Aura and Mew
by stocky-parker-dog
Summary: A twist to the movie 'Lucario and the mystery of Mew' as requested by AdorableSkitty. What I think would happen if Drew was included as a main character. Contestshipping. Attempting a second twist at a pokemon movie. I do NOT own the movie or the characters. Please Read, enjoy and Review please.
1. Changes

**Changes**

May's POV

I looked around me, amazed by all the bright colours of the costumes. I turned to my travelling companions, Ash, Brock and Max. We had all conveniently been in the same place at the same time. Because of this, we started travelling together. A lot had changed since the last time we travelled together.

Ash was 18 now, a legal adult (though at times he didn't act like one). His voice had broken a while ago, but it was new to me. It was now pretty low, lower than Brock's now (which I still found kind of funny). He still hadn't gotten rid of the red baseball cap that was always on his head, but you couldn't blame him. Even with growing up, Ash's hair hadn't become any less wild. I'd only seen it without the cap a few times, but it was still just as funny to see it all frizzy and sticking out at odd angles. According to Brock, he was a little less dense, but I hadn't seen proof of that yet.

Brock had calmed down as well. He didn't chase as many girls, desperately trying to get a date. I watched him gasp as he saw a pretty girl. He ran to her and took her hands in his. I rolled my eyes. Maybe not after all…I mean, had anything changed about Brock? His age? He was 24, but really, nothing else seemed to have changed about him. He was still the cook of the group (Ash still hadn't learnt not to burn things), he was still the most sensible (though that could vary depending if there was a girl in his presence or not) of us, still the one to give out advice, still on his journey to be a Pokémon breeder. What else had changed? Nothing. I actually couldn't think of anything.

Now Max was the one who had changed the most. He was much taller, having gone through a growth spurt. He was only 15 and I was 17, but he stood (quite a fair bit I should add) taller than me. He was less…ah…chubby than he was as well, having grown out of his baby fat. He had decided to become a Pokémon trainer and battle for gym badges. He wanted to get lots of experience with gym battles so he could one day take over the Petalburg gym from my dad. Something I respected him for. He had decided that he would be the one to take over so that I could continue with my dreams of being the best coordinator in the whole world. He'd also changed from wearing thick glasses, to wearing contacts. He had found that battling with glasses on could be very distracting. His hair was a shade darker, but the most that had changed? He was no longer a whiny little kid. He was now a whiny little (or not so little) teenager. Truthfully though, he had matured a lot, but he still liked to complain. It wasn't as annoying though because his voice was lower and less nasally since it had broken, not the high pitched whine it used to be.

I had changed a little bit too. I had grown a little so now I was at a comfortable average height for a girl my age (Max was just tall that was all). I still had my signature bandana to keep my hair out of the way, but I wore it differently. Instead of covering all my hair except two dog-eared chunks to the side, all my hair was at the back and the bandana went down behind my ears, more like a headband, but a really thick one made of fabric. My body had…uh…developed during the years. I had grown out of my baby fat as well and my waist was satisfactorily small, giving me a rather nice, slim hourglass figure. The bag I usually wore around my hips was now exchanged for a backpack (the straps had become too small to fit over my hips and it was uncomfortable around my stomach). Other than that, I was still the same (though I'd like to say my temper had died down a bit).

I snapped out of my thoughts when I bumped into someone (yeah, I was still fairly clumsy) and fell over.

"Ouch. Oh my gosh. I'm sor-" I stopped as I saw who it was.

"Clumsy as ever May," he chuckled. Wow. I did not expect to see my rival and friend here. He offered his hand and I took it. He yanked me back up to my feet and he let go quickly. If there was one thing I've learnt about Drew, it was he did not like physical contact. He was only touch hands if he had to, like to shake hands or help me off the ground and he always let go quickly after.

Thinking about change, Drew had changed as well. He wasn't so short anymore, also having gotten a growth spurt during his younger teenage years and he stood taller than me. Not quite a tall as Max (who I was starting to think was part giant), but tall enough so if he were really close to me, he could rest his chin on my head. Not that I ever thought he would do that. His hair had darkened slightly, and his green eyes were still just as vibrant and piercing as ever. He had also grown out of his baby fat, but unlike Max (who was actually pretty lazy); he had replaced it with the slightest hints of muscle. Being a coordinator (and a good one at that) he was training a lot and didn't really have time to 'work out', but he still kept his body in good shape. His voice had also dropped lower, but unlike the other two boys, I had been there when it broke.

It was another contest and like usual, Drew and I had arranged to meet up. We did this every time, just to keep on friendly terms and well, to get in a good competing spirit. Though that one time, Drew wasn't talking. I had been trying to talk to him, but he only shrugged, nodded or shook his head at me. I was wondering what was up with him and so I asked him why he wasn't talking. He shook his head vigorously. For the rest of the time, I kept bugging him about it and he eventually opened his mouth to tell me to shut up. I was surprised when his voice came out shaky with a high pitched squeak in the middle. I had blinked a few times before bursting out laughing. It was just too funny. Drew had blushed furiously, which just made me laugh more. I had never seen him that flustered and unconfident before. For a long time after (a couple of months), Drew refused to talk unless he had to. When he did start to talk again, his voice was deep and silky and totally worth the embarrassing period of squeaks and breaks (though he still didn't believe anything could be worth that).

I snapped out of my thoughts for the second time when Drew waved his hand in front of my face.

"Hey May!" he called, "you there?"

"Yeah," I replied, blinking my stinging eyes a few times. Why did I have to have my eyes open the whole time?

"Do you space out often?" He asked.

"N-no," I stuttered, "I was just thinking about the changes everyone went through."

"Oh is that right?" he questioned, raising his eyebrow, "does that include me. You know I've gotten even more handsome."

"No, I was thinking about how your voice broke," I retorted hotly. That's what didn't really change. He was still pretty full of himself, though not as much.

"I thought we agreed to never speak of that," he growled.

"I never agreed to such a thing," I said, "but it's not like anyone would care. Every guy goes through a voice break. I was just lucky enough to hear yours."

"Shut up," he growled, his cheeks going pink. I smirked. It was the only thing I could say that could get through Drew's façade. Talking about his voice break, but I didn't do it _too_ often.

"I wish I could've recorded it," I teased, "I'm sure many fan girls would've gone nuts for Drew Hayden's voice break. I could've been rich." He growled lowly again, scowling as he furiously tried to fend off his blush. I had learnt that Drew also hated blushing and always tried to get rid of it as soon as he could.

"I'm sure the press would've been pretty interested as well," I continued with a teasing smirk, "and they could've played it on national TV or radio. Or I could've given it to some serious techy and they could've bugged every electronic device to play it. Then the whole world could hear it."

"Be quiet May," he snapped, "Don't be embarrassing or I won't help you."

"Help me?" I questioned, "Why do I need help?" It was his turn to smirk, his blush finally fading away.

"Well, unless you're travelling alone again, I'd say you're lost," he replied. I looked around, quickly and panicking. Where was Ash? Max? Brock? Oh gosh. He was right. Somehow when I was deep in thought I had separated from them. Drew smirked.

"You'll help me find them right?" I laughed nervously, "You wouldn't just leave me would you?"

"May, seriously. How low do you think of me?" he said, smirking, "Of course I'll help you. We are rival friends aren't we?"

"Just checking."

* * *

"Look there they are," Drew said, pointing. We'd been only walking together for a little while. How had we found them that fast? I looked ahead, following his finger. There they were. They were sitting on a bench just ahead.

"Ash!" I yelled, waving to try to get his attention, "Ash!" He looked around as I got closer, Drew following close behind me.

"Did you hear May?" I heard him ask.

"I'm right here you idiot," I called.

"There you are May," Brock exclaimed, "We were just walking and then we realized you'd wandered off."

"And so we waited here for you," Max continued.

"I knew we'd spot you if you came passed," Ash finished, "you're one of the few who aren't wearing fancy costumes."

"Hey is that Drew?" Max asked, spotting him.

"Yes," I replied, "Drew helped me get back to you guys."

"Well, that's nice of him," Ash said, "Why are you here Drew?"

"The festival," Drew replied, "Solidad has been going on about it non-stop. She couldn't come, being pregnant and all. Harley's busy fussing over her. I thought I'd be nice and check it out for her."

"Aww, Drew's helping out Solidad," I cooed. I knew Drew had a soft spot for her, even if he didn't admit it. Not romantically either, just a soft spot. He had great respect for her and saw her as a role model. She was sort of like an older sister to him.

"Hush May," Drew hissed, "of course I'm helping out Solidad."

"Hey, everyone's wearing traditional costumes. Must be part of the dress code for the festival," Max said, coming between us.

"Great deduction, genius," Drew said sarcastically.

"But we don't have costumes," I said.

"You can get them at the palace," Drew said, flicking his hair, "says so in the brochure, but I wouldn't have expected you to read it." I curled my fists by my side.

"Let's go check them out," Ash said, "Drew you should come with us."

"Might as well," Drew shrugged, "I'd probably bump into you guys again anyway."

"What do you think you'll dress up as Ash?" Max asked.

"Something heroic!" He exclaimed, his face determined, "What about you May?"

"Oh, definitely a princess or something," I sighed, "What else would there be?" Drew smirked at me.

"Don't answer that!" I yelled at him.

* * *

**A/N: I'm so excited to start my new story! Yay! First chapter is just a little bit of an introduction to each of the characters. Yes again, I have put them older, but I find it easier to write with them older. So hope you enjoy this one as much as I'm going to enjoy writing it (a lot mind you).**


	2. Whispers

**Whispers**

Drew's POV

"Next please," The attendant yelled. Finally. We'd been waiting for ages to get into the costumes room. Apparently there were more people who forgot costumes than we originally thought.

"That's us!" May squealed. She took my hand and Ash's hand and pulled us both into the costumes room.

"Oh wow," she breathed, letting us both go abruptly, "look at all these costumes. How will I be able to just pick one?" She made her way between the clothes racks. I watched Ash head out to the far corner. Brock quickly grabbed his and Max sifted through the middle costumes. Oh well, I guess it was time for me to look through as well.

"Oh my Arceus, Drew you have to wear this!" May giggled. She threw something at me and I only just caught it. It was a…jester's costume?

"Seriously May," I said, raising my eyebrows at her.

"Just kidding," she laughed, "you should actually wear this one." She threw a bundle of grey and black into my arms. She pushed me into the dressing room.

"Oh May," I groaned.

"Please Drew," she pleaded, "I think it would suit you for some reason." I sighed. The things I did. This had better not be some embarrassing costume or something. I unravelled it and looked it over. It didn't look too bad. A black long sleeved top and pants, a grey tunic, grey gloves with a circle of silver on the back, a black cape, grey and black boots, a black satchel that could double as a belt and a black and grey hat. I shrugged and changed, wondering what May was thinking when she picked it. I stepped out to see that Ash, Max and Brock had already changed. Max looked like he was a squire, which looked kind of funny because he was so tall. Brock looked like a monk and Ash looked like a musketeer.

"Where's May?" I asked.

"Changing and for some reason it's taking forever," Max groaned.

"I'm done!" May sang, "What do you think?"

"Wow, are you still my sister?" Max asked.

"Wow May, you look pretty good," Brock complimented. I decided it was about time I turned around and so I did. My eyes widened at her. She was wearing a pink and red full length ball gown. Over her shoulders was a small white cardigan. Her hair was loose, not tied back by a bandana and it hung at her shoulders. She had a tiara resting on her head. She looked pretty good.

"Thanks guys," she said, "Hey Drew, I was right. It does suit you. You'll keep that on won't you?" I rolled my eyes, but nodded.

"So I'm a squire," Max said.

"I'm a monk," Brock put in.

"Obviously a princess," May giggled, pointing to her head.

"And I'm a musketeer!" Ash exclaimed excitedly, "but what on earth are you Drew?"

"I'm a…" I trailed off, frowning as I looked at myself, "I honestly have no idea what I am. May what did you throw at me?"

"I dunno," she shrugged, "it didn't have a label on it." She was looking at a small jester costume similar to the one she had thrown at me, but a baby's size. She picked it out and turned to Pikachu on the window. Pikachu looked confused. May quickly pulled the costume over his head. She put two shoes on his feet and a cap on his head. She smiled in satisfaction.

"He's so cute," she squealed. Pikachu chattered happily, apparently pleased at the compliment.

"Let's go," Ash said, "there's a tournament for who gets to be the guardian of the aura for the night and have a special place at the ball following."

* * *

"Presenting her royal majesty," the announcer boomed, "The illustrious ruler of Cameran Palace, Lady Ilene." Cheers and clapping sounded as a pretty woman walked out onto the balcony. She had long thick blonde hair, a crown with green jewels resting lightly on top. Her eyes, from where I could see, were also a vibrant green. She wore an elegant pink and white gown, the sleeves loosely dropping to her elbows as she waved politely at the crowd.

"Just look at her," May sighed, "She's beautiful." That was something I had learnt about May. She never thought of herself as pretty or anything. She had no self confidence in how she looked unless someone told her she was actually gorgeous.

"And now," Lady Ilene called out, "in honour of Sir Aaron and his noble deeds, we will begin our annual Pokémon contest." The crowd cheered again as the first round participants came out in the arena. Coincidently, it happen to have been Ash. He had a very determined look on his face.

"Go Ash!" May yelled.

"Yeah go Ash!" Brock and Max called. The round started and Ash ordered the first attack. Much to May's distress, Pikachu's costume disintegrated when he used thunderbolt.

"I took the time to dress him up all cute and Ash has to go and destroy it," she cried indignantly.

"What? It took you all of about what, 10 seconds to dress him?" I teased.

"Shut up grasshead," she muttered.

"Go Ash!" she yelled out again. It was natural she was cheering for Ash. They were friends, but I had to wonder who May would cheer for if Ash went up to battle me. Would she cheer for Ash? The boy she'd travelled with for years and been friends with for longer. Or me? Her rival and friend of a much more recent time. We were both her friends now, but we had different experience with May. There had been that time where May and I got stuck on Mirage Island, but there had been a time where May had also been stranded out in a park under a pavilion with Ash while it was raining (A/N: Made that up). Sure, my time was more drastic. She'd saved me from almost drowning and in return, I had saved her from Team Rocket, but with Ash she'd gotten more of a chance to talk to him. I wonder if May would have as much trouble choosing between Ash and I as much as I had trouble choosing who to cheer for; Solidad or May? I realized I had been zoning out and missed some of the battles. Out of the 31 battles taking place, I had been thinking for about 26 of them.

"Drew, are you even paying attention?" May asked.

"Yeah, yeah," I lied.

"Then answer me," she demanded.

"What was the questioned?" I asked. She rolled her eyes at me.

"I said, who do you think is that mysterious guy in the suit of armour?" May sighed, "He's going through battles almost as quickly as Ash." No wonder the battle had gone quickly.

"I dunno," I shrugged, "honestly May, how would you expect me to know."

"He, he, he, right," she laughed nervously. I rolled my eyes at her. She was a funny one.

"Weavile is unable to battle," the judge yelled, "Pikachu wins. We have a new guardian for the year, Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town!"

"Yay!" May squealed, "Ash did it! He did it, he did it, he did it!" The knight, who May had been talking about walked over to Ash. The audience hushed as they took off their helmet, revealing long brown hair.

"That guy's a girl!" May exclaimed.

"Really May?" I questioned, "It was never said that she was a guy in the first place. You just presumed, again. Shouldn't you have realized by now that assuming things gets you into trouble?"

"Ahh, shut up Mr Rose," she snapped, "How was I supposed to know that the red rose and letter wasn't from you? You ALWAYS give me roses." I blushed slightly at the nickname she had given me a long time ago. She hadn't called me that in ages and I did not intend for her to start again. Being identified by my red roses was embarrassing as it was, but being named after them? Uh-uh.

"I never brought that up May," I said, "You thought of that yourself, but don't you dare call me Mr Rose again ok? I hate it." She grinned.

"Mr Rose, Mr Rose, Mr Rose ooof-" While she had been chanting and dancing around me in circles, she had managed to trip over.

"You did that on purpose," she accused.

"Did it look like I tripped you?" I questioned. She paused for a moment before answering.

"No." I smirked.

"Ahh, shut up Drew."

"Didn't say anything."

* * *

We stood, right at the front of the crowd as Ash proudly stood on stage. We were up the front because May wanted the best view, typical move from her. Lady Ilene walked to him, holding a staff in her hands.

"This is the staff of the guardian that once belonged to the great Sir Aaron," she said, "according to our tradition, the winner of the Pokémon contest is named the aura guardian for the year and is presented with this staff. On behalf of my kingdom Ash, it's yours."

"Thanks," Ash said, taking it from her. The audience clapped politely and Ash looked at the staff in wonder.

"This really belonged to Sir Aaron?" he questioned. I saw a sparkle in the jewel of it. Curious I moved a little closer.

**_Why did you betray me? _**Huh? I looked around quickly. Who had said that? What was that about betrayal? I never betrayed anyone.

"Did you say something?" I asked, looking back at the group, but I didn't think it was them. The voice was different.

"No," they all said in unison. Lady Ilene moved to the centre again.

"Now will begin the grand ball, honouring Sir Aaron and our new guardian," she announced, "please enjoy yourselves everyone." I saw that everyone was grabbing dance partners. May, Max, Brock and I all went over to the refreshments table. I picked up a little glass filled with some sort of fruit punch and took a sip. I screwed up my nose and put it down again. I didn't like it.

"Hey look, it's Kidd again," Brock exclaimed, pointing to the brown haired girl from before. I guess he'd gone to confront her. May giggled as Brock ran over to her. Max filled a plate with food and went to sit down. That left May and I together. I turned to see that she was dreamily watching the people on the dance floor. So she wanted a dance did she? I could fix that. Before I had a chance though, someone stuck out their hand to her.

"May I have this dance?" he asked. May giggled and nodded. I scowled at the man. He was taller than me and had golden brown hair. His eyes were dark brown and he had glasses on. He was dressed as a prince. How typical. She giggled as he took her hands. He spun her around on the dance floor. I growled and glared even more. I saw Pikachu, dancing with an Aipom. Roserade would like to join them. I let out Roserade, Masquerain and Butterfree. Absol and Flygon were a little bit big to let out in this sort of environment. Ash's Pokémon soon joined in as well. I turned to May. She spotted the Pokémon out and broke away from him. She curtsied politely and ran to where I was.

"Come on out everyone!" she called. She released the Pokémon she had with her; Wartortle, Skitty, Beautifly, Munchlax. She looked at her last Pokéball.

"I think Blaziken is a little too big," she sighed.

"Glad you figured that one out," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Hush Drew," she hissed.

"Aren't you going back to your dance partner," I growled. She sighed and nodded.

"He's cute," she whispered and walked back to him. She curtsied politely again and took his hands again. I scowled. I may not admit this out loud, but I was a very jealous person.

* * *

May's partner swirled her around a few more times before they bumped into another couple. Her partner changed from May to another girl with pink hair. May's new partner had purple hair.

"Excuse me," I heard May call as she brushed passed the outside of the dance floor, "have we met somewhere. You look familiar." That's because it's James from Team Rocket you idiot, I felt like shouting, but I kept my mouth shut.

"Oh, I get that all the time," James laughed nervously. He held his face away from her and mindlessly swung May around to keep her from looking at his face. Ok, that's enough. I'm sick of watching. I strolled onto the floor, being careful to avoid any other partner changes. Very smoothly, I took May's loose hand and swung myself in between them.

"Cutting in," I said, taking May's other hand and pushing James away. I placed one of her hands on my shoulder and I put mine on her waist.

"Thanks Drew," she said.

"You looked uncomfortable, so I thought I'd save you," I said.

**_Sir Aaron!_** There it was again. I looked around. Where was it coming from? Could anyone else here that?

"Hey Drew!" she exclaimed. She pulled her hand from my shoulder and used it to turn my head back to face her.

"If you're going to cut in, you should at least pay attention," she huffed.

"Sorry, I was distracted for a moment," I apologized. She huffed and put her hand back on my shoulder.

"If everyone could stop dancing please," Lady Ilene called. I sighed, dropping May's hand and stepping back from her. I didn't get much of a dance with her. I knew I should've cut in sooner.

"Thank you," Lady Ilene said when the noise had died down, "Now we will pay one last tribute to sir Aaron."

"Let's get to the front," May whispered. She tugged my sleeve and I jerked forwards to avoid falling over. She pulled me right to the front. Ash looked like he was falling asleep in his chair. I bet when he thought of the special place at the party, he didn't think he'd be sitting down all night.

"Ash wake up," May whispered furiously. Ash jerked his head up and blinked a few times.

"Our new guardian will give the signal to start the fireworks," Lady Ilene announced, gesturing to Ash. He got up quickly. The maid whispered something to him and Ash looked at the picture next to him. He lifted the staff above his head. Outside the bursting of firework could be heard, but I was focusing in the staff.

**_I believed in you._** Curious, I moved a little closer. The jewel on top sparked and started glowing. It started to shake and Ash dropped it in shock. I reached forwards and caught it before it hit the ground.

"Idiot," I muttered to him, "don't you know this thing it antique. You can't just-" I cut off as the staff rattled furiously in my hands.

"What's happening?" The maid exclaimed.

"I don't know," I replied. The staff continued to rattle and shake. It was like it had a mind of its own and I could hardly control it. I glowed brightly and I couldn't see it anymore.

"Drew!" I was thrown back roughly as the staff exploded in bright white light, hitting my head on the ground. A gasp rippled through the crowd. What? What had happened?

* * *

**A/N: If you haven't guessed already, Ash isn't the hero of this story.**


	3. Lucario, Mew and a missing Pokémon

**Lucario, Mew and a missing Pokémon**

Drew's POV

I groaned, rubbing my head from impact. I sat up, only to be pushed back down to the ground again.

**_Sir Aaron!_** I looked up at my attacker. To my surprise I saw a Pokémon. It was a canine like Pokémon. It's fur was mostly blue and black with a cream chest and back. I could only just see the tip of his tail over the top of his head. He had three strange silver spikes; one on each of his two hands and a third in the middle of his chest. He had four black 'flaps' attached to the back of his head just behind his ears. Those flaps were currently raised as he looked down at me…sort of…His eyes were closed, but if they were open, he would be staring at me.

**_Why did you abandon the queen?_** This was the voice! Telepathic communication. But what was this abandonment? And the queen? I hadn't even seen the queen until this day.

**_Answer me_** he demanded, his foot pushing against my throat now.

"I don't know what you mean," I said.

**_Liar!_**

"No, I'm being serious," I insisted, "I have no idea what you're talking about." He stopped, the flaps lowering. His eyes slowly opened to reveal fiery orange, close to red, irises.

**_Huh?_** He looked around, apparently confused for a moment before he jumped off me. He dashed and jumped out the closest window.

"What was that?" I asked, finally getting off the floor.

"Lucario," Lady Ilene answered, "According to the legends he's a Pokémon who served under Sir Aaron." I looked down at the staff, carefully picking it up.

"He was in here," I muttered, "I thought you could only catch a Pokémon with a Pokéball."

"I don't know how," Lady Ilene said. She turned out to her people, hushing the whispers.

"You may all retire now," she announced, "and watch the rest of the fireworks display from the comforts of your own homes. Please do not worry about tonight. There is no danger." Murmurs rustled through the crowd, but one by one people started to leave.

"You might want this back now," I said, handing her the staff and bowing slightly. She was royalty after all.

"Lift your head," Lady Ilene said, "let me see you." I looked up at her. She gasped and stumbled back. The maid only just caught her.

"What's wrong?" the maid asked.

"It can't be," Lady Ilene mumbled, "it can't be…"

"What can't be?" I asked, very much confused by this reaction. She up-righted herself and her hand covered her mouth.

"My lady," the maid said uncertainly, "It's been a long night. Would you like to retire?" She got a hold of herself, bringing her hand down and gently clasping them together.

"No," she replied, "I need to find Lucario. I have a feeling he's going to be very confused."

"Hey Drew," Ash called. Ash, Brock and May came to me.

"Are you ok Drew?" May asked, "That looked like a pretty nasty hit." I rubbed the back of my head. I think I might get a little bump, but it really wouldn't be as bad as it seemed.

"I'm fine," I replied. Not really. This was a little strange.

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"I'm fine May," I repeated.

"Can you and your friends please help us?" Lady Ilene asked me, "I have a feeling we might need you." I nodded. I needed answers.

* * *

"Lucario!" Lady Ilene called. We had found him in a dark room with all sorts of cases with olden castle trinkets.

**_Lady Rin!_** Lucario called, brightening. The maid switched the light on, revealing this to be some sort of single room museum.

"I'm afraid I'm not who you think I am," she said, a sad edge to her voice. Lucario's facial features dropped noticeably.

**_Uhh…uh…_**

"You see, my name is Lady Ilene and Lady Rin was one of my ancestors," she continued. I could only watch as Lady Ilene walked forwards and pulled Lucario to her. Why was I here? Oh yeah, she wanted me to be here. But why? It looked like she had this under control.

**_Huh?_** He looked up at Lady Ilene.

"You've been asleep for a long time Lucario," she told him.

**_Is it possible?_**

"I am telling you the truth," she replied. He pushed away, backing up until he hit the glass cabinet behind him. He looked around panicked.

**_But…I was in this room….Just a few days ago._**

"Please believe me," she begged, "it may have seemed like days ago, but the reality is you haven't walked in this palace for centuries." He turned and frantically looked at everything, still panicking. Lady Ilene motioned to me. I stepped forwards, unsure of what I was supposed to do.

"Please, calm him," she whispered in my ear, "I think you can do it. You have a very calm sense about you."

"Ah…ok?" I said. I walked a few steps forwards.

"Lucario," I said. He stiffened. So much for calm.

**_What do you want?_** He asked, a slight bitterness in his voice.

"Just to know what's going on," I replied honestly. May gave me a funny look. Apparently he had gone back to speaking to me alone.

**_I need answers._**

"And so do I," I said, "so how about we all head back and talk about this?"

**_Your offer means nothing._**

"What do you mean?" I asked.

**_Nothing. I shall tell you what I know if you can give me answers._**

"Which I'm sure Lady Ilene has," I said.

**_Ok. Tell me what's going on?_**

"Shall we head back into my throne chamber?" Lady Ilene suggested, "we may be able to talk more privately there."

**_Good idea. We can't have spies overhearing us._**

"If that's what you want to call super nosey people then ok," I said. I heard a slight giggle from May behind me. She quickly tried to cover it up.

**_Ditzy_** Lucario said, following Lady Ilene.

"See, even in less than five minutes, Lucario can see it too," I whispered to her.

"Hey!" she yelled.

* * *

"According to the stories that were passed down, you vanished during the battle," Lady Ilene said, "Can you explain what happened?" We had managed to convince Lucario that he actually was in fact in a different time period to that of which he thought. Now Lady Ilene was asking him about what had happened in the battle.

**_There were two huge armies on the move; each side had sworn to destroy the other. The palace was trapped in the middle. I went out to see if there was a way to stop the fighting, but it was hopeless._**

"So, apparently Sir Aaron stopped it all," I said, speaking up, "I wonder how he did that."

**_What?_**

"Our legend says that Sir Aaron found a way to end the battle and save the palace," Lady Ilene said.

**_Impossible!_** Lucario exclaimed, getting up from his kneeling position.

"Isn't that true?" I asked.

**_Sir Aaron deserted the queen. He fled and trapped me inside the staff._**

"In the legend, he's a hero," May said gently.

"Could it really be wrong?" Brock questioned.

**_Hmm…_**

"It's late," Lady Ilene said, "Tomorrow we'll look into what is truth and what is fiction, but tonight, get some rest."

**_I will do what I can to help you._**

"Lucario, one thing hasn't changed," Lady Ilene said, "this castle is your home. Please feel free to stay here as long as you like."

**_I am deeply grateful your highness_**, Lucario said, bowing slightly to her. One thing still confused me.

"Hey Lucario," I said, "Why did you think I was Sir Aaron? I don't really look like him. Is it the clothes?" I looked at the portrait of Sir Aaron. He was wearing the exact same thing that I was. The only thing was; he had black hair and pale blue eyes. Last time I checked, my hair and eyes were both green.

**_No. The aura I sense in you is like Sir Aaron's._** Well that wasn't what I was expecting. What was aura? I'd have to look it up some time.

"Hang on a minute," May said, "Where's Max?" I looked around. She was right. I couldn't see Max anywhere. Or my Pokémon for that matter. As if on cue, Max burst through the door, our Pokémon chattering urgently behind him. There was Ash's Corphish, Phanpy, Grovyle, Swellow and Pikachu. May's Beautifly, Wartortle, Skitty, and Munchlax, but there was only my Butterfree and Masquerain. Where was Roserade? I avoided the need to panic at not seeing her. I'm sure there was some reason she wasn't there. Maybe she was just hidden from my view.

"You won't believe it," Max exclaimed, "I saw Mew."

"Oh, what an adorable little boy," The maid exclaimed. Adorable little boy? Couldn't she see how tall he was? He definitely wasn't adorable or little for that matter either.

"Adorable little boy?" Max questioned, "I'm 15! And I'm taller than May, Drew _and_ Ash. I'm not little!"

"Where's Mew Max?" May asked, getting him on track.

"I saw Munchlax walk out with a bowl of fruit and so I followed him seeing as I couldn't find any of your other Pokémon," he explained, "and I came to this jammed door. When I got it open enough to peek through, I saw Mew! But then he disappeared with Meowth, Roserade and-"

"Roserade!" I exclaimed, "Roserade disappeared?"

"Yeah, and you wouldn't believe who else I saw up there," Max said,

**_Mew_**, Lucario said thoughtfully.

"Wah!" Max exclaimed, almost falling over in his surprise, "who are you?"

"This is Lucario," Brock introduced, "A Pokémon who had been sealed inside the staff for the guardian. Somehow we managed to set it free."

"Are you sure you saw Mew?" May questioned, "And not something that looked like Mew?"

"I'm sure," Max said, "you gotta believe me. He got away with-"

"Mew was here." A voice said. Huh? I looked up to see Kidd, the girl Brock had been hitting on before, walking towards us.

"I was on the roof when I saw Mew change into a Pidgeot. It flew away with Meowth, Roserade and"

"Roserade," I said, "It got away with Roserade. Why would Mew take Roserade?" Calm down Drew, I told myself, just be calm, you'll work this out.

"It was probably playing," The maid said.

"Mew has a tradition of showing up here at the palace to play games and make mischief," Lady Ilene said.

"It disappears with toys all the time and they're never to be seen again," the maid finished. I froze. Never to be seen again? Roserade? Stay calm, I chanted in my head, you can find her.

"Do you know where Mew takes them?" I asked, "I gotta go find Roserade."

"We'll show you," Lady Ilene said.

* * *

Lady Ilene led us up to the highest balcony, where we could get a good look at the mountains.

"Although it appears that there's a giant tree on top of that mountain," Lady Ilene said, "It's actually a rock formation."

"Because of its great age," the maid said, "our ancestors named it the tree of beginning."

"Tree of beginning huh?" Ash said.

"That is where you will find Mew," Lady Ilene said.

"Thanks," I said. That looked a fair distance away. I needed to leave immediately.

"You must remember, Mew can change its form to look like any Pokémon in the world," Lady Ilene said, "it rarely shows its true form to humans so you might have trouble recognising it."

"Then how will we be able to find it?" May asked. We?

"The legend says that Lucario could lead the guardian to anyone because he had learned to see the aura inside all things," the maid replied. Aura again. I really needed to find out what that was.

"Lucario, do you really have the ability to see the aura?" Lady Ilene asked.

**_I do_**, Lucario confirmed.

"Could you please lead Drew while he goes to find Mew and his Pokémon?" Lady Ilene asked.

**_If that is your wish, then it will be my honour. _**He bowed to her again.

"Hey Drew, I'm coming with you," Kidd said, walking out. She had changed from her ball gown costume into pink shorts, a pink top, yellow boots, pink knee pads and pink elbow pads. Oh, that's what May meant we.

"Ahh!" Brock exclaimed, "Hey wait a second I know you, you're Kidd Summers!" I rolled my eyes. May wasn't the only one who couldn't recognise people through pretty simple disguises then.

"I've seen you on TV before, but you're even more captivating in person. I'm your biggest fan. Please forgive me for not recognising you right away, my love must've blinded me," Brock gushed.

"She's famous?" May questioned.

"Hello?" Brock yelled, turning on her quickly and getting out a little book, "Kidd Summers has set a world record for setting the most world records ever and she's soared higher, dived deeper space travelled farther than any other human being in history. Kidd's also a surfing expert, a gourmet cook and a badminton champ. To call Kidd a superwoman is the understatement of the century. She's super-duper." Brock held his hands out and shook them in front, like he was presenting a product on a show. Kidd laughed nervously and backed away from him a bit.

"It would be great if you could join us," Max said, "as long as we can find a cage for Brock."

"I agree," May said, giggling slightly. Kidd jumped away from Brock and sat on the edge of the balcony.

"I came here to explore the tree of beginning and solve the mystery of what it really is," Kidd admitted, "yet another first for me." She winked at us.

"Mm," I mumbled. This would be interesting. Me, Lucario and Kidd travelling together, all with different goals.

"You should rest for the night," Lady Ilene said, "and start your journey in the morning when you are all refreshed. You can all sleep here in the castle tonight."

"Thanks," I said.

* * *

**A/N: If you noticed in the description where I said which Pokemon came back with Max, you'll notice that Pikachu was still there. I just want you to know, that wasn't a mistake. Ash's Pikachu is not taken away in this story.**


	4. Road trip

**A/N: This was a frustrating chapter. I wrote it and then saved it and then my computer wouldn't let me open the file again so I had to re-write it. Stupid computer. It's not exactly the same as how I originally wrote it, but it's close enough. I think I like this version better anyway. I added an extra little scene. I hope you like this anyway.**

* * *

**Road trip**

Drew's POV

I turned out to look at the tree of beginning. Lady Ilene had given me a room with a window that faced it. I couldn't sleep and so I was looking at it, wondering how Roserade was doing. There was a knock at my door. Who was here at this time of night?

"Come in," I called quietly, "it's open." The door handle twisted slowly and it opened. I saw that May, Max and Ash were standing at the doorway. What? No Brock? I guess he was either sleeping or bugging Kidd again. May bit her lip and I turned back to the window. I didn't need them to check on me like this. They should be asleep already anyway. It wasn't like _they_ had a missing Pokémon. It wasn't like it was _their_ starting Pokémon. It wasn't like _they_ were so worried about her that _they_ _couldn't_ sleep. I jumped as May gently touched my arm. Since when were they next to me? I thought I had made my body language clear that I wasn't wanting company.

"Hey, are you ok?" May asked. She sounded so concerned. Strange.

"I'm just worried about Roserade," I admitted.

"Hey, it'll be ok," May said, "I bet she's already made friends with that Mew."

"I can't help but be worried," I said, "I can't relax until I see her again."

"Hey, you wouldn't mind if I tagged along as well would you?" she asked. Would I? Probably not. It would be a chance to get even closer to her.

"May, you know that we can't," Ash said, "We're going to the next town so I can get back to battling for gym badges. I'm not delaying so we can go on a side journey with Drew." I frowned. That was a little harsh. May wasn't a baby that needed to be told what to do, she was 17. She could look after herself and make her own decisions.

"I guess so," May said slowly, sounding disappointed. Her hand slid off my arm slowly. I felt disappointed now. Was she really going to let Ash boss her around like that?

"Actually Ash, you might want to go with Drew," Max said. Why? Why would Ash want to go with me? I couldn't less if Ash was with me or not. Oh well, if there was Ash, there would be May at least.

"Why would I want to travel with Drew?" Ash asked.

"You may have a little bit of incentive once I tell you," Max sighed.

"Tell me what, just spit it out already Max," Ash said.

"Well, I said Meowth and Roserade were taken right?" Max said. Ash nodded.

"Well, Drew never let me finish what I was saying," Max continued, "Mew also took a girl."

"A girl?" Ash questioned, "Why would Mew take a girl? What was she doing? Why would that change my mind? Can't Drew save her?"

"He could, but it just so happens that it was Misty," Max replied.

* * *

"Misty," Ash repeated, sounding dazed. Misty? I thought. Who was Misty? I don't know. Oh right. Misty was one of Ash's and May's friends. I think I've met her once or twice at one of Ash's parties. She was the girl with orange hair that had a temper worse than May's. She had a mallet for goodness sake. I can only be thankful she didn't introduce that to May or I'm sure I wouldn't be half as happy teasing May as I am now.

"We're coming with you Drew," Ash said, apparently changing his mind.

"Why the sudden change of mind?" I asked.

"Because this is Misty we're talking about," Ash replied, "I have to go rescue her." Ash walked out and Max followed.

"Because this is Misty we're talking about," May repeated with a slight giggle, "Oh Ash and his obviousness."

"He really likes that girl doesn't he?" I asked.

"Yep," May replied.

"He doesn't do a very good job at hiding it," I said.

"Yeah," May agreed, "Everyone can tell, but she's too stubborn to admit that it's true and he's too dense to realize that she likes him back." She clamped her hand over her mouth in sudden horror, looking at me.

"Oops," she said, "I wasn't supposed to say that. You won't tell anyone you know right?"

"No, I won't tell anyone," I said sighing.

"Hey, cheer up Drew," she said, "We'll find Roserade."

"I know," I said, "look it's late. You should head to bed."

"What about you?" she asked, "Won't you be lonely?"

"Huh?"

"You don't fool me. You're going to be up all night aren't you?"

"What if I am?"

"Don't you want company?" she asked. I had to smile slightly at the thoughtful offer, but I couldn't take it.

"Nah, I'll be fine," I replied, "I'll go take a walk, maybe look around for a bit then I'll come back and maybe pass out from exhaustion." This earned me another small giggle.

"Well, if you're sure," she said.

"I'm sure," I replied, "goodnight May."

* * *

May's POV

I was bumped up and down as Kidd recklessly drove her jeep, following after Lucario as he ran through the thick fog. Kidd drove, Brock was next to her, while Drew, Max, Ash and I squished in the back. I was crushed between Ash and Drew. We went over another bump and I painfully smacked heads with Drew.

"Ouch," I mumbled, rubbing the spot, "I'm sorry Drew."

"That's ok," he replied, "just another less than comfortable to keep me awake.

"This fog," Kidd exclaimed in frustration, "it's getting thicker." She had said that leaving in the morning would help avoid this; apparently leaving at 6 in the morning with a very rushed breakfast wasn't early enough.

"Hey, but Lucario can see through it right?" I said cheerfully.

"Yeah, he's guided by aura," Kidd replied.

"Aura?" I repeated. What was this whole aura thing?

"Hey Drew," I said realizing something, "Lucario said the aura he sensed in you was similar to Sir Aaron's didn't he?"

"Yeah," Drew replied, "and if I knew what it was, I could tell you." I smiled slightly. Drew was as curious as I was. I could tell by his indirect question.

"Aura is the living essence that's inside every creature," Kidd said.

"Deep," Drew said sarcastically.

"What's it look like?" Max asked.

"I think it's supposed to be invisible to most of us Max," Brock replied.

"And Lucario can see it right?" I questioned.

"That's right," Kidd confirmed, "long ago there were humans who could sense aura and control its power. Like Sir Aaron for instance. Apparently he passed his skills onto Lucario."

"So if Drew and Sir Aaron are alike," I started, "does that mean Drew can control aura too?"

"That would be pretty cool," Drew said, "I bet I'd be a natural." He smirked. We went over a rather large bump and Drew roughly hit the back of his head on the roof. He winced and rubbed the spot.

"Or maybe not," I said, giggling slightly.

"Not funny," Drew said.

"I'm sorry, are you alright?" I asked.

"Yeah," he replied, "just the same spot as last time." I winced in sympathy for him. Ouch that had gotta hurt.

* * *

Misty's POV

I woke up slowly. It had been a pretty rough night sleeping against a tree like this, but I had eventually drifted off. I saw that Mew and Meowth were already up. Meowth was busy looking through the pile of toys that had been stacked up. Mew was still hovering over the Roserade that was unconscious. What had happened to get me here? Oh yeah.

I was following Pikachu. I recognized it as Ash's and I was hoping to catch a glimpse of him somewhere in that castle. They had led me up to the attic where I had watched them play for a while. Unexpectedly Meowth crashed in through the window and two Weaviles followed. They had attacked Mew and I remember Pikachu got frozen while Roserade had defended Mew and me for that matter. And Roserade had paid for it. She was hit and was knocked out. That's when Mew had teleported us out of there. Unfortunately to the roof. Meowth had only just clawed onto the roof, but I had slipped off. Mew then transformed into a Pidgeot and caught me, flying over to this place.

Roserade was still unconscious though. I swear I recognized it too. Where had I seen one? It was killing me not to remember like this. Oh wait, it was coming to me. A boy with green eyes and uh…green hair. How could I forget a boy with green hair? He was at Ash's birthday when I ran into him. He was with May. What was his name? Derik? Daren? It was something starting with a D. I was sure. I can't remember. All I can remember is May introducing me to him as 'grasshead'. That wasn't his name though. I give up. I can't remember. Grasshead will have to do.

I was brought back down to earth at Meowth's startled cry.

"Not funny," he complained, throwing a toy aside. It hit me in the head.

"Hey!" I yelled, picking it up and throwing it back twice as hard. Meowth rubbed the back of his head. I mean what was he doing anyway? Mew frantically hovered around Roserade.

"I tink she just needs ta sleep some more," Meowth said. Mew didn't listen and kept on hovering around Roserade.

"So, you're unusually calm for having been kidnapped," I said, trying to make a conversation. I was bored out of my brain.

"Whadda ya mean?" Meowth replied, "I tink its ok dat Mew brought us here don't you?"

"Huh? Well, I just thought, it's usually you trying to kidnap Pikachu and other Pokémon, aren't you a little upset that the rare Pokémon kidnapped you?" I asked.

"Well it was eider get Pokénapped by dat Mew or get blasted by dose Weavile. I take Pokénapped over blasted," He said, "besides; it's not dat bad in here."

"Are you kidding? I'm so bored," I complained.

"We could play a game," he offered.

"Sure," I said, shrugging, "What do you have in mind?"

"Dere's a couple of games dat me, Jessie and Jimmy play while we're waiting," Meowth said, "I could teach ya a few."

"Go ahead," I said, "anything's better than sitting here."

"You ever played MASH before?" he asked. I shook my head.

"Ok, here's how it goes…"

* * *

May's POV

I winced as Ash's stomach growled loudly. How much longer would I have to listen to it? It was starting to bug me.

"I'm hungry," Ash whined for like the 6th time in ten minutes.

"So what," I snapped, "The rest of us are hungry too, but none of us are complaining." It was that moment that _my_ stomach chose to rumble loudly. Ash smirked at me.

"Ahh, shut up," I said, blushing as I wrapped my arms over my stomach self-consciously. Drew shifted beside me. Something was thrust in front of my face. I took it and held it away to find it was a muesli bar.

"It's called food May," Drew said, "you eat it." I blinked and cautiously unwrapped it.

"Hey!" Ash exclaimed, "Why couldn't you have given that to me before Drew?"

"Because you aren't directly next to me so I don't care about your stomach," Drew replied, "I don't want to have to put up with May's loud stomach though."

"Uh…Thanks I think?" I said.

"Just eat it May," Drew said, "before Ash snatches it from you. Then I'll have to put up with your stomach until lunch." I bit into it and Ash's stomach growled loudly again. Ash gave me a pleading look. I sighed and broke it in half, giving the unbitten end to him. He shoved it all in his mouth and chew for 5 seconds before swallowing.

"Hey Kidd," Max called, "Can we stop?"

"Why?" Kidd asked.

"I really gotta go," Max replied, "Like really gotta go and Ash is driving me up the wall."

"I think it might be a good idea to stop," Brock said, "I'll make us lunch as well to stop May and Ash from complaining." Kidd slammed the brakes and I was flung forwards, my head hitting the seat in front. I rubbed my forehead as Max immediately jumped out and ran towards the bushy cover. Kidd was a pretty rough driver.

* * *

**A/N: Ah road trips, the most boring and uncomfortable thing in the world. I hate them. I usually have to make an 8 hour trip every now and then to visit distant relatives so I can relate to Max, Ash, Drew, May, Kidd and Brock with all the bumps, squishes and sudden pit stops. They are not fun at all. Oh well. At least Ash, Max and May are coming along. Ash has his motivation now.**


	5. Hot springs

**Hot springs**

May's POV

Lucario sat on a rock some distance away from us. I didn't know why he didn't seem to want to interact with us. There wasn't anything wrong with us was there?

Brock was busy making us lunch. Chopping up all different foods and whatever else Brock does to cook. Kidd and Ash had been setting up the table. Well, mostly Kidd. Ash was complaining about his stomach which was still growling furiously. Max was out somewhere. I had no idea what was taking him that long and I honestly didn't want to know. So that left Drew and I doing nothing. Correction; Drew was doing nothing; I was busy trying to make sure my stomach wouldn't growl embarrassingly.

"Hey guys, I'm back!" Max yelled, coming towards us. I got up and thrust a small bottle of hand sanitizer at him. There was no way he was eating with us if he still had filthy hands. He gave me a confused look.

"It's for washing your hands with," I said, "It's like rub in soap." He nodded and applied it to his hands, rubbing them together.

"Lunch is finally ready!" Brock announced. Drew, Max, Ash and Kidd sat down at the table. Brock turned to me.

"Pass this to Kidd and this to Drew," he said, handing me two bowls of food. I winced as my stomach growled in protest at passing food to someone else.

"One for Max and Me and May," Brock said out loud, "and one for Ash." He stopped suddenly.

"Hey!" he yelled, "Where's Ash's gone?" We looked under the table.

"Hey, what kind of Pokémon are you?" Brock asked. Curious I put my bowl of food down to look. It was a little brown Pokémon with three green balls at the end of its sprout. I saw it looked kind of like a funny tree. Ash was down by me in a second.

"Hey!" Ash yelled, "That's MY food! I've been waiting for that! Go get your own!" The Pokémon started crying.

"You didn't have to shout at it," I said, "look you've made it cry."

"Hey look it's a Bonsly," Max said, "don't worry, it's just using fake tears attack." At this Bonsly instantly stopped crying. He picked up Ash's food and started to run away.

"Hey that's mine!" Ash yelled, "Give it back!" I watched it running away in amusement. It wasn't that fast and Ash could've caught up with already, so why wasn't he running after it. Lucario snatched the bowl from Bonsly and he slowed down.

**_Don't take things that aren't yours. Eat this instead._** Lucario offered a branch with some kind of berry on it. Bonsly jumped up, snatching it in his mouth before running and hiding behind a rock.

"Thank Lucario," Ash said, taking his bowl from him.

**_Your friends would not be able to stand anymore of your stomach._** Lucario turned and suddenly looked into the sky. A breeze started blowing. The sun started shining through the clouds, clearing away the fog.

"Well, hurry up and eat," Kidd said, "We need to get back on the road while this fog is gone." Oh right food, I needed that. My stomach growled loudly in agreement. Maybe I'd better do something about that now.

* * *

Misty's POV

"NO WAY!" I yelled, "There's no way that I'd marry James and have 7 kids. Do you know how crazy that is?"

"Hey, don't look at me," Meowth said, "Dat's just da way da game works." Meowth had taught me how to play MASH. What you did was write names (or in Meowth's case different types of Pokémon) down one side of the page, cars down the other, MASH up the top and numbers 1-10 down the bottom. The other person would draw a spiral on the page and stop when the person said so. The amount of loops were counted and you went along the page crossing out the name, letter, number or vehicle you landed on until you only had one left. That was supposed to be your spouse, your car, your type of house (MASH stands for Mansion, Apartment, Shed, and House) and the amount of kids you'd have. You got some pretty crazy results and we'd been playing for a while…

"Besides," Meowth said, "I got a Purugly last time. Do ya know how crazy dose tings are?"

"But James is like how much older than me? Yuck!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, I know dat twerpette," Meowth said, "I know yous a rader be with dat twerp with da Pikachu." I blushed.

"I do not like Ash," I hissed.

"Yous just keep telling yourself dat," Meowth said, "but everyone else can see it."

"It is not obvious," I retorted, "I do not like Ash."

"Come on, yous was on cloud nine went he was picked," Meowth said, "I hear da wedding bells. Dis game says yous gonna have 4 kids. Team Rocket gonna have ta be careful of yous' mini twerps." I blushed immensely. He said it like it was so natural.

_'Rose, rose Roserade?'_ Roserade had woken up. Mew did a few happy flips in front of her. Good distraction to lead him off topic.

"Oh thank goodness she woke up," I said, "Now we can get out of here and find her trainer. That grasshead. I still can't remember his name. Do you know."

"Grasshead?" Meowth repeated, "Is dat da one who has the carpet of grass for hair?"

"Yeah, that one," I said, "I can't remember his name, so I'm just calling him grasshead."

"He's da one who's always protecting dat brunette twerpette isn't he?" Meowth said, "If I didn't know better, I says he got a crush on dat girl." I rolled my eyes.

"Well you're in a matchmaking mood today," I said.

"Just spottin out da lovebirds," Meowth said, "I don't know his name eider. Grasshead will hafta do."

* * *

Drew's POV

We had been travelling for ages. All this bumping and rocking and complaining from Max was doing my head in. All I wanted to do was find Roserade. Now I had to travel with so many people. It would've been fine with just me, Kidd, Lucario and May, but no. I wasn't that lucky. Kidd slammed the brakes for the second time that day and I hit my head on the seat on front. Gee, I was going to have bruises all around if it kept going like this.

"Why'd we stop?" May asked. As if in answer a loud rumbling noise burst forth as a geyser erupted.

"Well, I dunno about you May," I said, "but I would rather not be blasted by those things." The road ahead was full of them.

"A bunch of geysers," Brock said.

"Yeah," Kidd agreed, "and they're pretty active right now."

"We'll have to wait them out," Brock said.

"And who knows how long that'll take," Kidd sighed. Wait them out? I needed to get to Roserade now! I couldn't stand to wait any more. May crawled over onto my lap to look out the window. I blushed. It wasn't that I didn't like physical contact. No, it was different. I hated blushing. I hated it so much. And whenever she came into contact with me, I blushed. That's why I told her that I didn't like contact. I just hated the way she could make me blush with a single touch. Frustrating.

"Look guys!" May exclaimed, "Is that a hot spring over there?"

"Ahh, yeah looks like it," Ash said, peeking through the window. See Ash could look through the window like a normal person. He didn't need to climb over me.

"We should go relax in the hot spring," May suggested, "while we're waiting." Was she going to get off me anytime soon?

"Sounds good," Brock said, "that ok with you Kidd?"

"It's not really up to me," Kidd said, "Drew's the one who's anxious to get there ASAP." May turned to me and blushed to find that our faces were inches apart.

"Ah…Y-yeah," I stuttered, hating myself for doing so, "It's fine with me."

"Well then, boys get out," May said. She opened the door and pushed me out. I fell to the ground, smacking the back of my head against the ground.

"What was that for?" I asked.

"I need privacy to change into my swim suit. You boys can go behind those rocks or something," she replied.

* * *

I sat down at the edge of the water. I was in my swim stuff, like everyone else, but I really didn't feel like going in. It reminded me too much of some stuff that had happened. Stuff that I couldn't deny had happened and yet didn't seem part of my life with the way it had turned.

Max was swimming around. Brock was relaxing. May was still changing. Pokémon splashed about in the water. Kidd was fixing the car engine (for some crazy reason) and Ash was getting ready to dive bomb in.

"Look out below!" Ash yelled. He jumped off a rock, curling into a ball as he did. Water splashed up towards me. I ducked slightly, only a few drops of water settling into my hair. I wasn't the only one who apparently didn't want to go in. Lucario was sitting on a rock, just watching.

"I'm here," May called. I turned. She was wearing a dark pink bikini. Her hair was down, no bandana or tiara holding it back this time. How had it taken her this long to change into that? She was holding a Bonsly. Maybe that was why. Knowing her, she'd probably spent a while talking to it.

"Come on in May!" Max yelled, "The water's great."

"Alright," she said. She walked closer to the water. Bonsly wriggled in her arms and hid behind Ash's Phanpy which had stayed on land.

"Bonsly won't want to come in the water, it won't like it," Max laughed, "it's a rock type Pokémon."

"Oh right," May said. She sat down next to me.

"Aren't you going in?" I asked.

"Not just yet," she replied, "I want to test the water first." She stretched her legs and tenderly dipped her feet in the water. She closed her eyes and sighed in satisfaction.

"Hey, don't you want to come in too?" she asked. She slid forwards a bit so her knees were submerged.

"I dunno," I said flatly, "I don't really feel like it."

"Oh come on," she said, "You'll love it once you do." To my surprise she reached up and her fingers wrapped around my ankle. She tugged and I was pulled forwards until my feet were dipped in the water. Gosh, she was stronger than she looked. The warm water soothed my skin. I sighed involuntarily and May giggled.

"See?" she said triumphantly, "Don't you want to go in now?"

"Maybe you do," I said.

"Huh?" I pushed her and she fell forwards. She landed in the water with a splash. She gasped, resurfacing for air. I laughed. She pushed her damp hair away from her face.

"Drew!" she yelled. It caused me to laugh more. Suddenly her wet hands wrapped around both of my ankles. She smirked at me.

"Why don't you come on in Drew?" she asked. And she yanked me forwards and so I splashed in after her. I wasn't really expecting her to be able to pull me in so easily and so I ended up jerking forwards. I hit the back of my head on something as I was plunged underwater. Couldn't they leave that spot alone? I'd already hit it several times. The bruise was never going to heal this way. When I broke the surface she was giggling hysterically.

"That's it Maple," I said, trying to sound threatening, but it came out as more of a chuckle; "You've got it coming." I lunged at her and so commenced our rather childish water fight.

* * *

**A/N: A few little extra twists this time. I am especially pleased with the scene between Misty and Meowth. It would be pretty interesting.**


	6. Time flower

**Time flower**

May's POV

I laughed as I floated back. Drew and I had been fighting with each other for a while now. It was really fun. It was actually really good to see Drew like this. Smiling and just playfully having fun like that. I had been worried about him. Ever since Roserade had been taken, he'd been all quiet and distant.

"Hey!" Drew called, "I'm not finished getting my revenge yet!"

"Stop Drew," I said, laughing, "My stomach hurts from laughing." He smiled at me and I felt myself melting, not just from the hot spring's heat either.

"Hey Lucario!" I heard Ash yell, "Come in! The water's great!" Lucario stood up, not saying anything and walked away behind a rock. I wondered why he was so cold and distant. Drew's face fell as he watched Lucario. Oh no. And after I had just gotten him to cheer up.

"I wonder what's wrong with him," Ash asked, "Why doesn't he ever loosen up." Drew turned; his eyes dark.

"He said he was betrayed," Drew said, "You never get over something like that."

"What do you mean Drew?" I asked.

"Never mind," he said stiffly, "I think I'll sit out and dry now. I've had enough." Why couldn't he ever open up to me?

"Ash you idiot," I hissed in frustration, "Now look what you did."

"I didn't know he was going to do that," Ash said. I sighed. A small sparkle caught my eye. I moved around to get a better look. Something that looked like a purple bud was growing on a little outcropping in the mountain.

"Hey guys, take a look at this," I yelled. Ash and Max waded over to me. I heard a splash and Drew was beside me as well. That got him back in.

"What is it May?" Drew asked.

"Look up there," I said, pointing to it, "I think it's a flower. Isn't it pretty?"

"Well, there's only one way to find out," Drew said. He stretched his arms.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Going to see what it is," he replied. To my surprise, he started to climb up the side of the mountain, securing his feet and hands on rocks I wouldn't even think about using. He got to the ledge and stopped. He touched it. A bright sparkle came from it. Drew, in surprise, jerked his hand back. The rock his foot was on crumbled and he fell back. He landed in the water with a splash. The bud wobbled and fell from its perch. I managed to catch it. Drew resurfaced, rubbing the back of his head.

"Are you ok?" I asked.

"Yeah," he mumbled, "just another rock hit the back of my head. It was especially painful this time."

"Look at the flower," I said, "it's so beautiful."

"Well, I didn't mean to pick it," Drew muttered.

"Yeah, we'll have to replant it a bit later," I said.

"For now, let's just get out," Drew said, "we've been in the water long enough and you don't want to turn into a prune do you May?"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"If you stay in the water too long, your skin goes all wrinkly," he explained, "looks like a prune."

* * *

The sun was setting by the time Max finally finished digging a hole. Who knew he was so slow?

"That should be deep enough right?" Max asked, wiping his head with his arm. I didn't know what he was sweating for. It hadn't been that much effort to dig a small hole.

"Looks like it," Ash said, getting off the ground from where he was kneeling, "let's check." Drew motioned for me to give him the flower. I passed it to him, the tips of my fingers tingling as his brushed against mine. The flower started to glow brightly. It started to untwist itself and open up. A blurred image surrounded us.

I saw a young boy, maybe five with green hair and green eyes run passed me and to the hot spring.

"Come on dad!" the boy yelled. I jumped as a man ran straight passed me. He had hazel eyes and green hair. He kind of looked like an older version of Drew with hazel eyes instead of green.

"I'm coming Drew," the man yelled. My eyes widened. The little boy was Drew? But Drew was right in front of me.

"Daddy, the water's nice," little Drew said, dipping his feet in. So that man was Drew's dad then. Hmm. Drew never talked about his dad. I wonder why?

"You aren't even in the water properly yet," Drew's dad said laughing. He picked up little Drew, who was giggling now and jumped into the water. When the splash came the image faded out. The flower closed again.

"What just happened?" I asked, a little freaked out. Was I hallucinating? No, Max and Ash had the same expression I was sure was written on my face. I looked at Drew, wondering what he thought of it. His eyes were dark and his lips were pursed tightly together. His brow was furrowed and he looked really tense in general. He just held the flower away from him, like it was going to hurt him if it came too close. What was that about?

"What happened?" I asked again. Kidd and Brock came over.

"You've picked a time flower," Kidd said, sounding astonished.

"What's a time flower?" Brock asked.

"The legend says Sir Aaron was able to look into the past using a time flower just like this one," Kidd replied, "but I didn't think it was true."

"How's it work?" Max asked.

"If the legend is accurate," Kidd started, "it responded because Drew and Sir Aaron's aura is the same. It means that he can see into the past with this."

"So what we saw then…Was that part of Drew's memory?" I asked. I looked at Drew. He nodded curtly.

"That was years ago," he muttered, "my dad once took me to a hot spring. I didn't think it was here." He thrust the flower into Ash's hand.

"You plant it," Drew spat, sounding really upset and maybe angry, "I'm getting out of here."

"What's wrong with him?" Ash asked.

"I'll go talk to him," I offered, following after him.

* * *

Misty's POV

"Ok, I'm officially sick of this game," I said, "I keep getting the same result."

"It's a sign twerpette," Meowth said. I blushed. I kept coming up with being married to Ash, living in a house, a commodore for a car and four kids. I'd lost count how many times it had come up.

"It is not!" I yelled, "I don't like Ash! This is just a game!"

"Don't ya tink yous overreactin?" he asked.

"Huh? What do you mean?" I asked.

"I'm just sayin yous make it really obvious yous like him when yous react like dat," Meowth replied.

"I don't quite get it," I said.

"Well den if yous don't like that twerp wid da Pikachu, I says you like dat grasshead, too bad he's taken already," Meowth said.

"I don't even know grasshead," I said.

"See, you just proved my point!" Meowth exclaimed triumphantly.

"What?" I asked.

"You overreact," Meowth said, "every time someone says yous paired with da twerp, yous scream and yell and deny it like crazy, but if we pair yous with someone else, you don't make a fuss. Makes it really obvious yous tryin to protect yous secret, but yous doin just da opposite." I frowned.

"Huh? I never thought of it that way," I said, "so if I just denied casually it wouldn't be obvious that I like Ash."

"Well yes, but not for me. Yous just admitted it ta me," Meowth said. I thought over what I had just said. My mouth dropped.

"You sneaky little-"

"Yeah, yeah I know dat," Meowth said, cutting me off, "how else do ya tink I get information outta people. You gotta trick dem inta saying what ya want."

"Wow, that's pretty clever actually," I admitted, "I'm going to have to keep a closer eye on you."

"Well, we'll see won't we twerpette," Meowth said, "you still don't know my oder (other) secrets yet."

"Hey, I just want you to know, It's surprisingly nice to talk to you," I told him.

"Yeah, I'd say so as well twerpette," Meowth said, "weird huh?"

"Yeah…"

"How bout we play anoder (another) game den?"

"I'm in."

* * *

Drew's POV

I can't believe it. That stupid flower just had to show me that. Spoil my mood. I had had such a good time with May as well. Stupid! It just had to remind me. I picked up a rock from the ground and threw it as hard as I could.

"Hey Drew," May called quietly. I sighed, sinking down to the ground.

"What?" I asked.

"Are you ok?" she asked. I bit my lip, wondering how to answer. I wasn't exactly ready to talk about it yet.

"I guess," I lied.

"Don't lie to me," she said firmly.

"How do you know if I'm lying or not?" I asked.

"Because you're obviously not ok," she replied, "You looked really upset, maybe even angry after that flower closed."

"Then why'd you ask if I was ok or not if you knew the answer?" I asked.

"It's called being polite," she said, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No," I replied.

"Oh my Arceus," she exclaimed, "Drew you're bleeding."

"I am?" I questioned, looking at her, "where?" She knelt down next to me. Her hand touched the back of my head. When she withdrew it, I saw that her fingers were covered in blood.

"Arceus," I muttered, "I knew that last hit felt different."

"How many times did you hit that spot?" she asked.

"I lost count," I replied. She pushed my head down and brushed her finger through my hair, trying to find the exact spot. If she wasn't so focused on that, I would've maybe appreciated the gesture romantically.

"Oh my goodness Drew," she said, "You've hit the bruise so many times that you've just split it open."

"Does it look like I could help it?" I shot back.

"No," she said, "but you need to come back and get that taken care of. You wouldn't want it to get infected."

"Can't you fix it here?" I asked, "I don't feel like going back."

"Stubborn much?" she giggled, "I guess I could go and bring some stuff back. Promise you won't move."

"Why would I move?" I asked.

"Because I've found that guys are very proud and don't like to be taken care of. They have to 'brave it out' or they feel weak," she replied.

"Well, as long as you don't bring anyone with you when you come back," I said, laughing, "I can't have them know that I have to be bandaged up by a girl."

"Don't worry," May joked back, "your secret is safe with me." I started to feel a little light headed. That couldn't be good.

"Just go already would you?" I said, "I'm starting to feel faint." I dramatically put my head to my head as an act to lighten up a bit. Too bad May didn't see the humor.

"Oh my gosh are you gonna be ok by yourself?" she asked. I frowned, my head feeling a lot worse. Actually, no, I felt like saying, my head is killing me, but I didn't.

"I think so," I lied.

"Ok, I'll be quick," she said, getting up, "Don't you dare pass out on me." She ran away. My head was pounding now. Ahh, forget staying awake. It hurts. I lay back and let the black take over.

* * *

**A/N: And Drew went and passed out.**


	7. Fight with Lucario

**Fight with Lucario**

May's POV

I ran back to the camp as quickly as I could.

"Hey Brock, where's the first aid kit?" I asked.

"In the back of the car," Brock replied, "Why?"

"I just need some stuff," I said, "hang on, did you mean back as in back seat or back as in boot?"

"Back seat," Brock answered, "It was by my feet before just in case, but I put it in the back for now."

"Ok thanks," I said. I opened the door and immediately saw the kit. I opened it up and searched inside. I took out disinfectant and a bandage. I shoved them in my pockets. I closed it again, flipping the latch so it wouldn't burst open again.

"Thanks Brock," I said, "I'll be back in a moment. Don't worry; I'll bring Drew back as well." I headed back quickly to where Drew was. I gasped when I saw him.

"Drew!" I exclaimed. I knelt down next to him. How dare he?

"Idiot," I muttered. He'd gone and fainted. Oh well, at least he wouldn't be able to feel the sting of the disinfectant. I opened the same bottle of it. I screwed my nose at the sour smell. I rolled him to his side, to give me better access to his head. I took the handkerchief from my bag. I poured some of the vile smelling disinfectant onto the hanky and moved his hair out of the way. I rubbed the cloth over his wound. It looked really painful; all bruised and bloody. Why didn't he tell me? I could've dealt with it sooner. In his unconscious state he let out a small whimper as I rubbed the disinfectant over his wound again. If I wasn't so concerned for his health, I would've thought the action cute. It wasn't often you saw him whimpering like this. Ok forget it, even if he was hurt, him whimpering was really adorable; like a little puppy.

Once I was satisfied with cleaning the wound, I wrapped the bandage around his head. I sat down properly, crossing my legs. I pulled him up so his head was in my lap. It would do no good for him to lie on it and make it worse. I brushed my hand through his hair, appreciating its softness. I was kind of glad he was unconscious. I would never do something like this if he was awake. The realization of that sent shock coursing through me. I jerked my hand away. If you wouldn't do it when he's awake, don't do it when he's asleep, I reprimanded myself. Drew whimpered again, nuzzling himself closer. Aww, he was so adorable. I couldn't resist. I stroked my hands through his loose hair again. No doubt if he woke up, he'd be wondering what I was doing, but I couldn't avoid that.

"M-may?" he questioned, his eyes cracking open slightly. Speaking of which.

"Thank goodness you're ok," I said.

"What?" he asked.

"You passed out," I explained, "You seriously scared me. It was like Mirage Island all over again."

"You were scared that time?" he asked.

"Of course I was," I said, "You'd just passed out after falling over a waterfall. It freaked me out. I thought you wouldn't wake up and if not for those Wynauts, we'd probably both have drowned."

"Sorry," Drew whispered.

"Are you ok now?" I asked.

"I think so," he whispered again, "my head is pounding something awful though."

"We should probably head back now," I said, whispering for his headache, "the others might be worried."

"Can we just stay for a while?" he asked, "I like this."

"Huh?"

"You playing with my hair," he said, "it's soothing. Please don't stop." I blushed, realizing I was still forking my fingers through his hair.

"Sorry," I apologized, stopping, "it was soft and I don't know what came over me." He reached up, taking my hand in his own and put it back on his head.

"I said don't stop," he said, "I like it. It's relaxing and I really just need to relax for a little while."

"Ok," I said, giving in, "but only for a little while. Brock's probably making dinner right now and you know I don't want to miss out on that." He chuckled quietly.

"Just five more minutes then," he said. I sifted my fingers through his hair a few more times.

"Hey May?" he said.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

* * *

Misty's POV

"I spy with my little eye, something starting with M," I said.

"Music box," Meowth said.

"How did you know?" I asked.

"We're running outta tings ta spy twerpette," he replied.

"Oh right, I knew that," I said. I yawned. Gosh, what time was it?

"How bout we call it a night?" Meowth said.

"Yeah," I agreed, "Even Roserade's pretty tired from playing with Mew all day." Roserade came up to me.

'Roserade rose,' she said sadly.

"What did she say?" I asked.

"She says she misses her grasshead pal," Meowth translated.

"Well, how long were we planning on staying here?" I asked, "I mean, there's no way we can stay here for much longer. We've been here a whole day and I haven't eaten since last night. I'm really hungry." As if agreeing, my stomach growled loudly.

"I can see dat," Meowth said, laughing, "We'll see how we get outta here. We don't know how we get round dis place. Might get lost and dat would be worse."

"I suppose you're right," I said, "but you know I can't survive forever here."

"I know dat," Meowth said, "I'm just worried. I mean, we dunno da way outta here."

"Yeah…" I trailed off, biting my lip.

'Roserade rose, rose,' Roserade said.

"She says she _really_ misses her grasshead pal," Meowth said before I could ask, "like _really_ misses him. Says dey been togeder longer dan ya tink."

"If I remember right, this was grasshead's starter Pokémon," I said, "I'm sure she does really miss him. She's probably never gone without him. C'mon Meowth. We just gotta get out of here."

"I tink I'm gonna regret dis, but say we spend da night, tomorrow mornin we'll see what we can do bout getting outta here," Meowth said.

"Thanks Meowth," I said.

"Why were you asking me anyway?" he asked.

"Well, I couldn't just leave you behind," I replied, "we're in this together right?"

"Yeah, together," Meowth said. I picked up the music box, seeing that Roserade was distressed. I winded the key in the hole and opened the lid. A little plastic Lapras rocked gently as a soft tune floated from the box.

"Go to sleep Roserade," I said, "We'll find your grasshead tomorrow."

* * *

May's POV

True to his word, we only stayed in our little moment for five more minutes before Drew had gotten up and told us we should head back. I was slightly disappointed. Contrary to what I had said, I could've sat there with Drew's head in my lap, playing with his hair for hours. But my stomach had other plans. We got back just in time for dinner. Now we were all sitting around a fire, just talking to each other.

"So Ash," Kidd said, "I heard from Brock that you decided to come because your friend Misty was kidnapped. Tell me about her."

"She's my best friend," Ash replied, "I didn't even know she'd be there, but I just had to come to rescue her."

"Oh," Kidd said, "sounds like you guys are pretty close."

"Yeah, but you wouldn't think so when you first saw them," Brock said laughing.

"Really? Why?" Kidd asked.

"Ash and Misty used to fight all the time," Brock replied, "In fact the only reason she was travelling with Ash was because he owed her a bike."

"Huh? I don't get it," Kidd said.

"Well, I first met Misty when I was running away from an angry flock of Spearow. I had gotten them angry after I threw a rock at them. I jumped into the water with Pikachu, who didn't like me at that time. I thought I was a goner, but Misty fished me out, by accident. Pikachu was hurt and so I used her bike to try get to the nearest Pokécenter, but I fell off. Pikachu was weak and so I stood in front, ready to protect him. Then Pikachu rushed to my aid with a huge thunderbolt attack. In the process I blasted her bike. Misty followed me the whole way, carrying her bike until she caught up to me. She then said she'd continue to follow me until I paid her back."

"That's an interesting story," Kidd said, "What about you Drew? You're going to rescue your Roserade? Tell me about her."

"Roserade is my best friend," Drew said quietly, "I've known her since she was a Budew."

"Really?" Kidd said, "So you evolved her all the way?"

"I had Roserade since I was five. She's my oldest and most trustworthy friend," Drew said.

"I thought you weren't allowed Pokémon that young," Ash said, sounding confused.

"Not legally," Drew said, his fists clenching slightly, "She was technically my dad's Pokémon, but my dad said he'd give her to me to raise so I would form an early bond. I raised her and by the time I was ten and ready to head out on my own journey, she had evolved into Roselia. I was believed in her abilities due to practising and she felt the same way. She's she only thing I had to rely on at that time. I promised I'd never leave her and she said the same. It's why I gotta find her."

**_You humans are all the same! You can't be trusted!_** I turned to where Lucario stood up. Ash and Drew both stood, Drew looking angry, Ash looking offended. Ash ran out in front of Lucario to stop him from going.

"Are you saying you don't trust me?" Ash yelled.

**_You would abandon your loved ones if you had to._**

"I wouldn't leave Misty," Ash yelled.

**_I'm not talking to you. I'm talking to Drew. He'd leave Roserade without hesitation if he had to._**

"There's no way I would leave Roserade, didn't you just hear what I said!" Drew yelled, stepping closer, "I just said I would never leave her!"

**_Your word means nothing._** Drew's fists clenched and I could see pure anger in his eyes.

"How do we know Sir Aaron betrayed the queen like you said!" Drew yelled, "Why don't you tell us the real story? I bet YOU deserted the queen and Sir Aaron didn't you?"

**_What did you say?_** Lucario turned and saw just as much anger on his face as was on Drew's. I ran forwards.

"Drew, calm down," I said gently, putting a hand on his arm. I'd only seen him angry a few times, but I knew enough that if he was angry enough, he'd do something he regretted. He tensed under my touch, but didn't move from his spot.

**_What makes you think that Roserade didn't run off and desert you because it didn't want you as a master?_** Drew's fists tightened.

"Take. That. Back!" Drew growled, his voice dangerously low.

**_No, I bet she ran off on you. See how much that hurts!_** Drew didn't answer. He shrugged off my hand and ran at Lucario, tackling him to the ground. I gasped in horror as they both rolled down the side of the bank and into the water.

"Drew! Stop!" I yelled. I ran down as fast as I could. I could only watch as Drew and Lucario wrestled in the mud, throwing punches at each other and blocking. Lucario kicked Drew off him and right next to the bank. Drew got up, glaring, ready to attack again.

"Stop Drew," I called, running into the water, I wrapped my arms tightly around his waist, holding him back.

"May, let go," he growled.

"No Drew, have you forgotten about your head already?" I said, refusing to move, "you'll split it again if you keep fighting so just stop." Lucario glared at Drew before he jumped out, walking along the bank. Drew's tense shoulders relaxed slightly and only then did I uncurled my arms.

"I'm outta here," he muttered, shrugging me away and stomping up the bank.

"I wonder why he was so riled up?" Max asked.

"I don't know," I said, "I'm going to go find out though. You guys set up the tents. I'll be back."

"I'll go find Lucario," Max said, "I'll be back soon too." We all nodded to each other and headed our separate ways.


	8. Drew's pain

**Drew's pain**

May's POV

"Drew," I called softly, "Drew where are you?" I spotted him at the edge of a cliff, looking up at the stars.

"Drew," I called softly again. I heard him sigh heavily.

"I had a feeling someone would come after me," he said.

"Well someone had to," I said.

"I'm glad it's you though," he said.

"Drew, why'd you say that stuff to Lucario?" I asked, "It wasn't very nice."

"I don't know," Drew said, "I just got angry that's all. When he said I would abandon Roserade I just got so mad. I would never do that. Betraying someone like that…It just hurts."

"Drew…" I said, trailing off. What was I supposed to say now?

"I know I shouldn't have picked a fight," Drew continued, "but the idea of Roserade running off on me hurt so much. I would hate it if that happened to me."

"Drew, why can't you open up to me," I said to myself.

"Come sit," he said, patting the grass next to him. I took his offer and sat next to him

"Why'd it hurt you so much Drew?" I asked. He seemed to be more hurt and angrier than any other person. There had to be a reason.

"Betrayal hurts," he said, "you never get over something like that. It just hurts so much. I guess I've been reminded of that now more than ever."

"What happened Drew?" I asked.

"I told you Roserade was my first Pokémon," He said, "my dad and I raised her. I didn't have a mum. My dad never spoke of her ever. I had asked and he never said anything about her. I just assumed she was dead. My dad was the closest thing I had. Like every other boy, my dad was my hero. But he was so much more than that. He was my friend, he was my protector. He was my world. We did everything together. Everything. He even took me to work because he couldn't stand to leave me at home. I loved him and he loved me. We were as close as we could be. He gave me Roserade when she was a Budew and you wouldn't believe how happy I was. We shared many memories together; my dad, Roserade and I. Those days just seem part of a dream now."

"What happened?" I asked, "I never heard you talk of him."

"I don't care about him anymore," Drew snarled, "I hate him."

"What?" I asked, "I don't understand Drew." He looked at me.

"Let me just show you," he said. I was confused until I saw him reach down towards a time flower. He closed his eyes for a moment and touched it. It opened up and instantly the cliff around us faded. It turned into a broad forest.

"Dad, where are we going?" a voice asked. I recognized it. It was Drew. I caught sight of him and his dad through the trees. Drew looked ten, like when I first met him.

"You'll see," Drew's dad replied. They came out to stand near where we were.

"You have Roselia don't you?" his dad asked.

"Of course I do," little Drew said, holding out a Pokéball.

"I want to tell you, she's finally been transferred to your name," his dad said. I noticed Drew's dad looked tense. A lot tenser than the last time I had seen him in the vision.

"You brought me all the way out here to tell me that?" little Drew said, laughing, "you're strange."

"No, that's not all," Drew's dad said. He motioned to the side where there was a picnic basket. Drew walked over to it.

"Wow, a picnic," little Drew said, "thanks dad. This is gonna be the best birthday lunch ever." He opened the basket and I saw that there was a lot of food in there. A lot more than necessary for just two people.

"Don't eat it all at once," Drew's dad said. Little Drew laughed.

"There's enough food to feed a whole army," little Drew said, "I don't even think I could eat all of this in two days."

"Good," Drew's dad said, backing away a little bit. Little Drew didn't seem to notice his dad moving away from him. He continued to look through the basket.

"Are you trying to make me fat?" little Drew asked, "Because you know I won't become fat." Drew's dad didn't answer. His eyes shifted to the forest.

"Oh no," I whispered. He wasn't going to do what I thought he was, was he?

"Dad?" little Drew questioned.

"Yes," Drew's dad said, close to the edge of the trees now.

"Oh, I thought you'd fallen asleep on me," little Drew said laughing.

"No!" I screamed as I saw Drew's dad disappear into the forest, "No you can't just leave!" And I realized what had happened.

"Dad?" little Drew questioned, turning. His eyes widened, not seeing his dad anymore.

"Dad, where'd you go?" little Drew asked. He got no response. His dad was long gone.

"Dad!" little Drew yelled, looking around frantically. He again got no response.

"Dad!" little Drew screamed, "Come back!" He sank to the ground and I saw the start of tears come to his eyes. The vision faded and I was suddenly back on the cliff. I breathed heavily, taking in what I had just seen. I came to the horrible conclusion. Drew's dad had abandoned him.

* * *

"I sat there for two days," Drew said, breaking the silence, "waiting for him to come back and get me, but he never did." I looked at Drew. He no longer looked proud, arrogant, and overconfident. He looked broken, he looked hurt. Tears stung at the corner of my eyes.

"Oh Drew," I sighed.

"He never came back," Drew repeated; a touch of anger and hurt in his voice, "he left me there, in the middle of the forest on my birthday. My own dad ran out on me. Who cares that I could've died there. He only left me enough food for three days. Who knows what would've happened if Roselia hadn't come out and persuaded me to get out and find my own way. I knew she was right. I found my way out of that forest. I headed in the direction I knew was home; hoping for it to be a mistake, but when I got there, he had moved. The house was empty except my room which still had a few of my belongings. I sat there crying for hours. I don't know how long it took me, but I eventually gave up and accepted what had happened. I packed my stuff and headed out for my journey." I started to cry, tears pouring down my cheeks.

"I hated him after that," Drew said, his voice breaking slightly in the middle, "I changed that day. I started doing things on my own. That's how I've been since then. Alone." His shoulder started to shake.

"It's why I have to find Roserade," Drew said, "she's the one who's stayed with me the longest and I'm not ready to give up on her."

"Drew," I whispered. I couldn't stand it anymore. I flung myself at him and wrapped my arms tightly around him. I felt his surprise. At that moment I didn't care that he hated contact. I didn't care. He needed this. He needed to know that someone cared. Someone was going to stay with him through thick or thin. Someone who could be a friend no matter what. Someone who would love him. That someone being me. I snuggled my face in his chest.

"May?" he questioned.

"Shh," I whispered, "just hold me because I won't let you go." His arms slowly wrapped over my back and I felt safe, but it wasn't about what I needed right now. I rubbed my face along his shirt, trying to dry my tears. Drew had always been there, strong for me, it was my turn to repay that dept. I rested the side of my head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

"I'll always be here for you," I whispered, "I promise."

"Thank you May," he whispered back, his voice full of unshed emotion.

* * *

"We should head back," he said, breaking the silent serenity of the moment.

"Yeah," I whispered, releasing him, "I guess we should. Brock and the others will be waiting for us." He shifted and got up. I looked up at him as he offered his hand. I took it in my own and he helped me up, not letting go immediately. I think I had finally broken through to him. I smiled at him, wiping away the last of my tears.

"You missed one," he said. He reached towards me. My skin tingled as he brushed his thumb over my cheek. The action sent shivers down my spine. He offered me a smile; not one of his heart melting ones, but a smile all the same. That was a start. We walked back in silence, neither of us really having anything to say after that intense confrontation.

"Hey May!" Brock yelled upon seeing us, "You're back! And you brought Drew too! Thank goodness."

"Are the tents set up?" I asked. Brock nodded.

"Yes," he replied, "there was a single tent, a double tent and a three man tent. We've already decided our sleeping arrangements while you were gone."

"Ok, what are they?" I asked.

"Well, Kidd said she'd like to sleep by herself, so she's in the single one. She's already asleep as well, so we can't change that," Brock said, "Max got back before you. He said Lucario just wants time alone for a bit. Max, Ash and I are all going in the three man tent so I hope you don't mind, but you're with Drew in the double one." I almost did a double take at that. Max was usually so protective of me. He was worse than my dad when it came to boys. I found it surprising he would let Drew get that close to me. I was surprised he let Drew get as close as he had already. Maybe he didn't see Drew as dating material. Too bad I did.

"That's fine with me," I said, realizing Brock was looking for an answer and that Drew wasn't going to give it to him, "but seriously. Is it ok with Max? You know how he is."

"Yeah," Brock said, "but he said he didn't care about the sleeping arrangements because he was so tired. Unusual, I know."

"I'm tired and I'm going to sleep," Drew announced. I watched him go into the tent.

"I'd better go in too," I said, "I wouldn't want to wake him up if he falls asleep. Night Brock."

"Night May," he said, "you sleep well." I opened the flap and got in the tent, zipping it shut behind me. I turned to see Drew had already gotten into one of the sleeping bags. I wriggled myself down in the other, comfortably cuddling myself into the soft material.

"Hey May?" Drew said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"I want you to know, thanks for listening to me," he said, "I haven't talked to anyone except Roserade about this. I know it must be overwhelming to find out something like that, but thanks anyway." I smiled; happiness filling me. He'd only told me and Roserade. It made me feel special.

"That's ok Drew," I said, "I told you, I'll always be here for you. No matter what happens."

"That means a lot," he said. I smiled again and he smiled back. I found myself unable to look away from his dark emerald eyes. They just caught me in a place and I couldn't tear myself away.

"May…" he whispered softly. His hand cupped the side of my face and I found myself leaning in to his touch.

"Yes?" He leaned closer, his eyes closing. I found myself repeating the action. His lips touched mine gently. Sparks flew behind my closed eyelids. He pulled away softly.

"Thanks for being there," he whispered. His hand slipped away and he rolled over to face the other way. I smiled. Maybe it wasn't exactly a romantic gesture, but it still meant a lot. It was his way of thanking me for everything.

"Night Drew," I whispered. He mumbled something in response that I could only just make out as 'Night May'. I snuggled myself down. I would have good dreams tonight.

* * *

**A/N: Waah! I cried writing about Drew's past. It's so sad. :'( I think I'm just going to go find something sugary to cheer me up. At least there was a kiss.**


	9. First attack

**First attack**

May's POV

The car rocked back and forth as Kidd recklessly drove again. Drew was looking out the window, but I could tell by the way he kept jerking his head back that he was trying to stay awake. The poor guy. Two late nights in a row and I felt pretty sorry for him. He just wouldn't let himself rest. I frowned as he jerked himself awake again. I'd had enough of this.

"Drew," I said gently, putting my hand on his shoulder.

"What?" he asked, turning to look at me with his sleepy green eyes.

"Please rest," I said.

"No," he replied, "I can't rest until I find Roserade."

"I know Drew, but you aren't helping yourself or anyone like this," I said softly, "you won't be any help if you fall asleep."

"But May I-"

"I don't wanna hear your excuses," I said firmly, cutting him off, "you need to sleep." He sighed and put his head against the window.

"Good boy," I said. He shifted slightly and closed his eyes.

"May?" he murmured.

"Yes?"

"I can't sleep," he said.

"Just try," I begged.

"I can't," he said stubbornly, "the window's really uncomfortable." He lifted his head.

"Take your seatbelt off," I commanded.

"Why?" he asked.

"Just do it." He shot me a confused look, but unbuckled the seatbelt from around his waist.

"Now, curl your knees towards your chest," I said. He frowned and brought his knees to his chest.

"I don't see how this is supposed to make me more comfortable," he muttered.

"Just trust me," I said, "twist your body around to face the window completely." He did as I told him.

"This is seriously not comfortable May," He said.

"You will be in a moment," I assured. I put my hands on his shoulders, slowly pulling him back so that he was eventually lying with his head in my lap.

"You can move your legs so they're more comfortable," I told him. He shifted so his legs were stretched out and dangling off the edge of the chair, down the side in the little gap between the seat and the door.

"There, isn't that better?" I asked.

"I have to admit you're a pretty good pillow," he said.

"Now can you try to sleep?" I asked.

"Maybe," he replied, "maybe if you play with my hair again." I rolled my eyes. Still, I brushed my fingers through his hair, ignoring the strange look I was getting from Ash. I was probably getting a death glare from Max as well. Drew closed his eyes again.

"Promise you'll wake me as soon as we get to the tree of beginning," he mumbled.

"I promise," I whispered, "now sleep."

* * *

Misty's POV

I nudged Roserade awake. She slowly opened her eyes.

'Rose?' she asked. I shrugged, having no idea what she said. I pushed Meowth.

"Wah!" he exclaimed as he rolled down the little hill and into the puddle of water I'd been drinking from the past two days.

"I'm drinking from that anymore," I joked as Meowth quickly got out.

"Dat's not nice twerpette," Meowth complained, "you know I hate water." He shook himself out and his fur puffed up. I resisted the urge to laugh.

"Actually I didn't," I said, "you never told me." He started to flatten his fur down.

"I may be able ta speak da human language, but I'm still a Pokémon. A Meowth Pokémon. You do know how much we hate water don't ya?" he replied. I rolled my eyes.

"And yet, I've seen you in the water several times," I said.

"Dat's cause I don't wanna look weak in front a dat twerp wid da Pikachu," Meowth said, "do ya know how much trouble I'd have if he knew?"

"You can call him Ash you know," I said, "Or even just twerp if it's that much of a code breaker. I know you'll be talking about him. I mean who else to you call twerp?"

"Hmm, I tink yous got a point dere," he said.

"So do you really think we can get out of here?" I asked.

"I dunno twerpette," he said, "we'll just gonna have ta see. Hey maybe Mew can show us da way."

"That's a good idea," I said, "Mew! Can you show us the way out of here?"

'Mew, mew, mew, mew," it said.

"He says you should stay," Meowth said, "and play wid him. Roserade as well."

"You know we gotta get out of here," I said, "grasshead will be worried about his Pokémon and I really can't survive in here for much longer." My stomach growled loudly again. I groaned. It had been doing that all last night.

'Mew, mew, mew,' Mew said dejectedly.

"He says dat if we follow him, he'll lead us out," Meowth translated. I picked up Roserade.

"Well, come on then, let's go," I said. Mew floated ahead, leading the way as I followed. Don't worry grasshead, we're bringing her home.

* * *

Drew's POV

"Drew, wake up," May said, nudging me. I moaned. I was having a good dream. Why'd she have to wake me?

"I don't want to," I mumbled.

"Drew, wake up," she said, nudging me again.

"I'm comfortable," I murmured.

"You said to wake you when we came close to tree of beginning," she said, "so wake up."

"Are we close?" I asked.

"Well, Lucario stopped and we're all getting out now," May said. I reluctantly opened my eyes. I was met with sparkling blue ones. I sighed, thinking just for a moment how I'd like to wake up to sapphires every morning.

"I guess I'd better get up then," I said, lifting myself from her lap. I looked around to see that everyone had already gotten out of the car. May giggled next to me.

"What?" I asked, realizing she was still looking at me.

"Your hair," she said, covering another giggle, "it looks funny."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I was playing with it," May replied, "and now it's all messy up. Here, let me fix it." She reached over and started fiddling with different pieces of my hair, pulling them back into place. She smoothed her hands over my head.

"That's better," she said. I rolled my eyes and we both got out. Lucario was frozen, looking up at a rocky ledge.

"What's wrong Lucario?" Ash asked. Lucario tensed up.

**_This is the place where I was trapped in the staff._** I frowned. This couldn't be easy for him. Getting reminded of something like that had to hurt a lot. Especially after what I accused him of last night. I had to apologise. Lucario walked forwards a few steps.

**_Why?_** He sank down to his knees.

**_Why did he do it?_** I saw the light spark in the time flower he had landed next to. Here we go again. A vision appeared and suddenly I saw the blurred image of Lucario and Sir Aaron. Sir Aaron threw his staff into the ground just a little bit in front of where Lucario was standing. The staff glowed brightly, like it had done when Lucario had been released. Lucario of the image glowed and started to be sucked into the staff's gem. May gasped next to me. I watched as Sir Aaron jumped onto a Pidgeot and flew away. Before I had time to think about it, the staff started shaking as the ground rumbled. I looked to where it was coming from. My eyes widened when I saw hundreds, no thousands of Pokémon charging through the valley. They rushed around us, the images seemingly going through us. Lucario looked distressed.

**_AHHH!_** In his hands a light ball of blue formed. He shot the aura sphere; obviously intending for it to hit the Pokémon, but it went straight through.

"May!" Max yelled. I saw it was heading straight towards her. I jumped, knocking her down, landing on top of her as the aura sphere flew over our heads. I supported myself over her, leaning my elbows on the ground on either side of her.

"Are you ok?" I asked, "It didn't brush you or anything?"

"I'm ok Drew," she replied, "just a little shell shocked." I ducked down again; trying not to crush her underneath me as another sphere narrowly missed us.

"Stop it Lucario!" I yelled, hoping the volume of my voice wouldn't hurt her ears.

"It's just a vision from the past!" Ash added. Lucario backed away, his foot touching the time flower. The vision faded, the Pokémon disappearing.

"That was scary," May whispered.

"You know, Lucario was right," Brock said.

"Hey! Drew!" Max yelled, "Get off my sister!" I rolled over her, being careful not to pressure any of my weight on her.

"It's ok Max," May said, "he just protected me from the aura sphere."

"Sir Aaron wasn't a hero," Brock said bitterly, "he wasn't even around."

"So that whole legend of the champion thing was wrong?" Kidd questioned. Lucario shook his head and ran away.

"Where's he going?" May asked. I gritted my teeth.

"Betrayal hurts," I said, "it hurts a lot. Being reminded of it like that is just like ripping open an old wound." I got up off the ground and held my hand out to May. She took it and I helped her up.

"Drew," she whispered quietly, "I think you should talk to Lucario this time."

"Why?" I asked.

"You two have a lot more in common than you think," May said, "I think you're the only one who can really relate to anything he's been through."

"What do you mean May?" Max asked. May looked at me, a question in her eyes. I shook my head. I didn't need everyone knowing. My life wasn't something that they needed to know about. She nodded slightly.

"Don't worry about it Max," May said, smiling, "Now Drew, go find Lucario." I sighed. I guess I had better.

* * *

I found Lucario. He was bent over on the ground. I remembered feeling that way when I found my house empty. It was when it had really sank in.

**_He was my master…and he betrayed me._**

"Yeah, betrayal sucks doesn't it?" I said. He straightened, stiffening noticeably.

**_What would you know?_**

"A lot actually," I said, "I know how much it hurts to be abandoned like that. I know."

**_I doubt it._**

"Oh yeah, you got betrayed by Sir Aaron, your master and I'm assuming friend right," I said, "Well, I was abandoned by my dad."

**_What?_**

"Yeah, you heard me," I said, "My dad left me in the middle of a forest on my birthday. He left me there, couldn't care less if I died there."

**_What kind of dad is that?_**

"The worst kind," I said, "but you see, I know how you feel. I know how much it hurts and look, I'm sorry about what I said last night. I was just angry and upset and I didn't mean it."

**_I…I didn't know. I forgive you._**

"Thanks," I said, "we're in this together right?"

**_Yeah…_**His ears twitched. He closed his eyes and the flaps on his head raised, shaking slightly.

"What is it?" I asked.

**_Get May out the way or she'll get hurt._** I ran back to May.

"May!" I yelled. I pulled her hand and yanked her towards me.

"Drew, what's-" She cut herself off with her own gasp as something burst from the ground where she used to be. Lucario ran out.

"It's Regirock!" Kidd exclaimed. Regirock picked up Kidd's car. We moved out the way of it as it threw the car down. It shot out a hyper beam that just barely missed us.

**_Let's move._**

"This way!" Kidd yelled. She led everyone down the path that I had just come from, between two giant rock faces.

"Go May," I said, pushing her out of my arms and towards where they were. Lucario shot an aura sphere at Regirock as he fired another hyper beam. The two attacks collided, but the aura sphere pushed through the hyper beam, smashing into Regirock's face.

**_Let's go._** Lucario ran out to the crack where everyone had just run.

"Drew are you ok?" May yelled.

"I'm fine, keep moving!" I called back. Lucario ran up to the front, leading everyone along.

**_In here._** Lucario motioned to a cave in the wall. We all entered.

"How will we get to the tree of beginning?" May asked, panting as she slumped against the wall.

"Now's not the time to relax," I said, "Regirock can still find us in here." I took her hand and yanked her away from the entrance, running to catch up to the others.


	10. Running from orange blobby threats

**Running from orange blobby threats**

Drew's POV

**_I think we lost it_**, Lucario said, slowing his pace. May let out a relieved sigh. I finally dropped her hand.

"Do you know why Regirock attacked us?" Ash asked.

**_It was just giving us a warning._**

"Why would it do that?" Kidd asked.

**_We're getting close to the tree of beginning. It must be on the lookout for intruders, to protect it. _**May stumbled and I caught her before she could hit the ground.

"Are you ok?" I asked.

"Yeah," she replied, "I just can't see anything anymore."

"Hang on a minute," Kidd said. She searched around in her satchel for a moment.

"Aha!" she exclaimed, pulling out two torches. She handed one to me and flicked the other one on. I pressed the on button, letting even more light enter the cave.

"How are we supposed to know where to go?" May asked.

**_I'll find it._** The flaps on Lucario's head raised. He walked along and we all followed.

"Is that better?" I asked May, gesturing to the torch.

"A lot better," she replied, "How's your head? You didn't hurt it again."

"Seriously May, its fine," I replied, dodging from her hand, "Why are you worrying so much?"

"Because I care," she replied, "and because you passed out on me last time you hit it."

"Well, I'm fine," I assured, "I haven't even touched it. Besides, you put a bandage over it, what else could you do? I feel ridiculous enough as it is keeping this on." I tapped the bandage for emphasis.

"It just looks like a one of those sweatbands Drew," she said. She giggled slightly.

"What?" I asked.

"I dunno, we just kinda match," she replied, "both wearing a head accessory now." She pointed to her bandana. I rolled my eyes, smiling slightly at the thought.

* * *

"Wow," May breathed.

"What?" I asked.

"Look at this," she replied, "isn't it beautiful?" I leaned over her shoulder to get a look at what she was looking at. A small blue crystal was sticking out of the wall.

"That's really nice," I said.

"Nice? It's gorgeous," she said, sighing. Well, it was pretty nice. So bright and blue. It kinda reminded me of her eyes. She sighed and shook her head, walking away. I looked at the gem again. I really shouldn't…But finders keepers right?

"Drew, you coming?" she called back.

"Yep!" I shouted, "Just give me a moment." Without another moment's hesitation, I wrapped my fingers around the crystal. I yanked it with all my strength. It broke out of the wall. I shoved it in my pocket.

"I'm coming!" I called to her. I ran to catch up.

"What were you doing?" she asked.

"Nothing important," I said, shrugging. As we walked along, I noticed the wall was covered in more little blue crystals.

"Hey look guys!" Max exclaimed, "I can see light ahead!" I clicked the torch off, not needing it anymore and handed it back to Kidd. She put both torches back into her bag. We headed out into the open.

"Wow." I had no idea who said it. I was one of them, May was another, but other than that, I couldn't make out which voice was which. It didn't matter. This place looked so beautiful. We were standing on a jutting out piece of land. Below us was a crystal clear lake. Trees grew in different spots, healthy, strong and tall. A few small waterfalls gently cascaded down from places I couldn't really see. There were a few small patches of land in between all the tress and the waterfalls. Pokémon flew, swam and roamed around freely, undisturbed in the totally natural habitat. Even more, bigger blue crystals were scattered all over the place.

"Well, it seems we're right under the tree of beginning," Kidd said.

"And is Misty up there?" Ash asked excitedly.

"Roserade too?" I added.

**_Right above us._**

"Yes!" Ash yelled, "I'm coming Misty!" Ash ran up the side where there was a ramp.

"Ash do you know where you're going?" May asked.

"C'mon," I said tugging her hand as I ran ahead, "We just go straight up."

**_That's the idea._**

"Wait up Drew," May exclaimed, "I can't run as fast." I paused for only a second to swing her up into my arms before running again. I just had to find Roserade.

"Drew!" she squealed.

* * *

Misty's POV

"Oh come on, we've got to be close to getting out of here," I moaned. We'd been walking around in tunnels for a while now.

"Mew, mew, mew,' Mew said.

"He says dat we're gettin close to da outside," Meowth translated, "means we can see da way down from dere."

"Oh good," I said.

'Mew, mew," Mew said, pointing ahead. I saw the light coming in from the end of the tunnel. I gasped.

"Look, there it is!" I exclaimed. I put Roserade down. I'd been carrying her long enough and my arms were tired. I ran up.

"Wow," I gasped. The view from up here was amazing.

"Now dat's what ya call a view," Meowth said. I nodded dumbly.

"MISTY!" I heard my name being called and my heart leapt.

"It's Ash," I whispered, "Ash is here."

"Twerp's here?" Meowth questioned, "What's he doin here?"

"I don't know," I answered. Honestly I was shocked. One, Ash was here; two, he knew I was here; three, he was looking for me.

"Misty! Are you there? Give me a sign!" he yelled.

"ASH!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, "I'm all the way up here!"

"I can't see you!" he yelled back.

"Hang on! I'll find my way down!" I yelled.

"Is Roserade with you?" Someone else called. It was grasshead! He was here too.

"Yeah!" I yelled, "I'll bring her down for you."

"We'll meet you halfway!" grasshead yelled.

"I'm coming for you Misty!" Ash yelled. My heart leapt again.

"Looks like da twerps determined ta find yous," Meowth teased, "now if dat ain't devotion, I dunno what is."

"Shh," I hissed, blushing, "We just gotta find him." I gasped at the sound of an explosion.

"Misty!" Ash yelled, "I can't get up on the outside! There's Regice. I have to go back inside!"

"I'll find you!" I yelled.

'Roserade,' Roserade said. She ran off in a different direction, into a different tunnel. I ran after her.

"C'mon Meowth," I said, "Looks like Roserade knows which was to go."

"I'm coming twerpette," Meowth said, "don't leave me behind." I looked back to see both him and Mew following us. That was surprising. Why was Mew following? He floated up to Roserade and hovered around her as she ran. I guess Mew didn't really want to give up his play mate. Meowth was panting heavily now.

"Dis place needs an escalator," he complained.

* * *

Drew's POV

I put May down just as we rushed into the tunnel.

"We'll be better off if you can run by yourself," I told her. She nodded.

"Keep up ok?" I said. She took my hand tightly in hers.

"Just don't let go," she said, "and I'll be fine." I pulled her along as we ran from our newly iced over exit. I stopped as soon as we came into the next room. It was a big room with a dark, seemingly bottomless pit. Columns of blue rock jutted out everywhere. Which way do we go?

Screaming filling my ears. I looked up. To my surprise, the two Team Rocket members came running from a different direction. They landed flat on their face in front of us.

"Oh please," Jessie begged, crawling to Ash and taking his hands, "you know we're desperate if we're coming to you." Ash smiled awkwardly and shook her from his hands.

"Those brutes keep trying to blast us!" James shrieked, pointing from where they came from. To my horror, I saw the Regirock from before AND a Registeel. Registeel fired a hyper beam that exploded very close to us. His aim was just a little off. Lucario jumped onto one of the columns of stone.

**_Quickly! This way!_**

"Don't need to be told twice," James said. Both Team Rocket members scrambled to their feet and ran to where Lucario was.

"No problem," Jessie said, running passed Lucario. Bunch of scaredy cats. I tugged on May's hand and pulled her along. I heard the others footsteps, but I didn't bother to look back. I still didn't look back when I heard a blast behind us. Lucario had probably fired another one of those aura spheres. I heard another blast as I tugged May into the next tunnel. Team Rocket suddenly stopped. I ran into the back of James' back. Why had they stopped.

"Hey, why'd you stop?" I demanded.

"High…Narrow…bridge…fall," Jessie stammered incoherently. I looked around and passed her. It was a high narrow bridge that looked pretty daunting. Well, the thought of getting blasted by Regirock and Registeel outweighed anything else.

"Just move you cowards!" I yelled, pushing them forwards. They both stumbled, but ran forwards, gingerly stepping on the tips of their toes. Like that was going to help them.

* * *

Misty's POV

I stopped for a moment to look over the side. My jaw hit the ground. Not only was there Ash and grasshead, but there was Brock, May, Max, James, Jessie and some other girl I'd seen on TV a few times. Was it Kidd or something?

"Meowth, check this out," I called.

"What's it?" he said. I pointed.

"It's Jessie!" he exclaimed, "and James!"

"Looks like I'm not the only one who has someone coming for them," I said.

"I can't believe dey'd come all dis way for me," Meowth said.

"Looks like they did," I said.

"Dey did," Meowth said, "well, come on. We gotta find dem." Meowth started running down through more tunnels. I watched him, laughing at his new found vigour. Funny how seeing someone you care about could give you extra strength. I looked back one more time, just in time to see the bridge fall away. I gasped. How were they going to get back now? Oh well, I had to find Ash.

"Wait for me Meowth!" I yelled, following after the three Pokémon. Hang on. There was only one. Where was Roserade and Mew?

"Where'd the other two go?" I asked.

"Said dey found a different path," Meowth said, "I lost track a dem."

"If I find grasshead first, he's gonna hate me for losing her," I muttered.

"Just keep moving twerpette," Meowth said, "it ain't your fault."

* * *

Drew's POV

"Look out for that AHHHH!" I heard James yell. Somehow, he and Jessie had gotten way ahead of us. Jessie's scream filled the air. My eyes widened when I saw her. She was in the middle of some blobby orange thing, slowly sinking into it.

"What is that?" Max asked in both horror and disgust.

"It thinks I'm a snack!" Jessie screeched. She started screaming.

"No!" James cried in distress. Her screams were cut short as she was fully sucked into the orange…thing. It dissolved into the ground, leaving no trace of Jessie. Another orange thing enveloped James.

"Oh no," he cried, "Chimecho, save yourself!" He managed to pull his hand out and release the Pokémon inside the Pokéball he was holding. Both his Pokémon watched as James was sucked into the orange thing the same way Jessie was.

"What are those things?" May asked, sounding scared. A blast behind us startled me to look back. How did Regirock and Registeel get here? I thought Lucario blasted the bridge.

"Let's run for it," Brock yelled. Lucario fired an aura sphere. I pulled May forwards. I stopped short as I saw another orange thing headed towards us. Hmm, orange thing that could eat us or Regirock that could blast us. I didn't like my options. It came closer. Lucario pushed out in front of us, firing an aura sphere at it. It burst into pieces.

**_We have to keep moving._**

"Right!" Ash agreed, leading the way.

"Somebody tell me what they are!" May cried out.

"White blood cells for the tree," Kidd exclaimed, "they're meant to encapsulate and eliminate threats. It thinks we're some kind of disease."

"Speak for yourself," Max retorted.

"What do we do?" May asked.

"We have to find a way out of this tunnel," Kidd said. We kept running. Who knows where those things could come from. Kidd screamed.

**_Look out!_** I turned in time to see Lucario push Kidd out the way, himself getting caught in the process.

"Lucario!" I had no idea who said that, Ash or me, but all I know is I could just watch. The blood cell morphed and sank into the ground. I blinked in surprise, seeing that Lucario was still there.

"Pokémon aren't considered dangerous," Kidd said in wonder. A crash came from behind us. I saw that Regirock and Registeel had caught up to us. We continued running, Kidd only just managing to dodge the hyper beam that was shot at us. We came into a rounded room, several paths. I slowly prised May's fingers from my grasp. She gasped at me.

"I'll lead them away from you," I said, "try to find the way out. I'll find you later." Kidd nodded.

"I hope…" I added to myself.

"Let's hustle," Kidd said, leading the way.

"Wait! Drew!" May cried as she was pushed down another tunnel. I smirked, lifting my hand in a two-fingered salute. Lucario stopped by me.

"You're staying?" I questioned in wonder.

**_I can't leave. I know you'd do the same for me. In this together right?_**

"Right," I said. I released two of my Pokémon, Flygon and Masquerain. I waited until I could see Regirock and Registeel.

"Masquerain, use bubble. Flygon use flamethrower," I commanded. They did as they were told, the attacks exploding in front of them. I climbed up to a different path.

"Hey you!" I taunted, "Didn't like that huh? Well, I'm up here if you wanna catch me." I ducked as a hyper beam was shot at my head. Wow they didn't like being taunted. I'd better get out of here.


	11. Reunited and torn apart again

**Reunited and torn apart again**

Misty's POV

"Ash!" I yelled. I had completely lost any signal from him. I was desperately running, trying to find him, Meowth panting by my side.

"That's Misty!" I heard Ash exclaimed. He was close. Really close.

"Ash!" I yelled again, "I'm close!"

"Misty? Where are you?" he asked, "I can hear you close by, but I can't see you." I came to the exit of the tunnel. My heart raced as I saw him.

"Ash!" I yelled, jumping a few platforms. He looked up. A huge grin broke out on his face.

"Misty!" he yelled. We both met up on the middle platform. I raced to him, throwing my arms around him.

"Ash, you came for me," I said.

"Of course I did," he said, "we're best friends." I nodded, my face rubbing against his shirt.

'Pikachu, pika, pi, Pikachu,' Pikachu huffed.

"Oh, I haven't forgotten about you," I said to Ash's offended Pokémon, "I'm happy to see you Pikachu. I pulled away from Ash and patted Pikachu on the head. He chattered happily. Meowth came beside me.

"Yous sure was determined ta see twerp here," he panted, "You make it hard for a Pokémon ta keep up."

"What's Meowth doing here?" Ash asked, tensing.

"Oh, don't worry," I said, "Meowth's been really good company for me."

"Dat's right," Meowth said, "I'm not gonna steal any Pokémon. Strictly not on Team Rocket business. Speaking of which, where's Jessie, James and dat grasshead?"

"Um…" Ash trailed off.

"Jessie and James were both eaten by the tree's white blood cells," May said, looking away.

"What! My pals!" Meowth exclaimed. My eyes widened as I saw something orange and gooey enter from a different tunnel.

"Look out!" I yelled. Too late. It wrapped around Max. I gasped as Max was slowly sucked in, despite May frantically pulling his wrists.

"Help me!" he yelled.

"That's what ate Jessie and James," Ash said quietly. I heard Brock grunt and turned to see he had one of the orange things around him.

"Save yourself guys," Brock yelled, releasing his Mudkip and his Forretress. Brock and Max were both fully engulfed and the orange things sank down into the ground, taking Max and Brock with them. May suddenly screamed as one engulfed her. She released her Pokémon. Beautifly, Wartortle, Skitty, Blaziken, and Munchlax.

"I'm sorry," she whispered before she sank down. I gasped.

"May!" I yelled, kneeling down to where she had just been.

"Misty!" Ash yelled. I turned to see one of the orange things heading towards me. I was roughly pushed out the way, skidding across the ground. I looked up to see Ash struggling in the middle of the orange thing.

"Ash!" I screamed. He released his Pokémon.

"Look after yourself," he said, "I'm sorry." I grabbed his hands.

"Misty, let go," Ash hissed, "you can't save me."

"But Ash," I cried, my voice choking, "Why'd you do it?" We'd only just been reunited.

"Because…I love you Misty," he said. His head sank under. I almost dropped his hand in shock. I held on tightly, refusing to let go.

"C'mon Ash," I hissed, "fight back. You can't just confess and leave like this. It's unfair." And then his fingers slipped out from mine and I knew he was gone.

"Ash!" I yelled, sinking to the ground. Tears flowed down my face and I didn't bother to stop them. He'd loved me. And he'd gone without knowing I felt the same way about him.

"Oh Ash," I sobbed. I saw another orange thing coming for me and I didn't bother to dodge it. It could eat me for all I care. I was suddenly yanked to my feet and pulled away. I'd forgotten about Kidd.

"C'mon," she hissed, "it won't do you any good just sitting there. We've gotta get out of here now."

"Ash!" I screamed, reaching back. Oh Ash. I sniffed, wiping my nose with the back of my hand. He'd want me to live. I nodded determinedly, following Kidd. Wait! Where did Meowth go? As if in answer he hopped onto my shoulder.

"Don't mind me hitchin a ride wid you twerpette," He said, "I'm not quite fast enough ta keep up wid you humans." I smiled dryly. He was just putting on a brave face. I'm pretty sure he felt just as bad as I did.

* * *

Drew's POV

_'Drew!'_ I stopped. That was Roserade calling me. It sounded close too. I turned quickly looking down the tunnel her voice had come from.

"I'm coming Roserade!" I yelled. I shot down the path as fast as I could.

**_Wait! Drew!_**

"What for?" I yelled back, "She's just ahead."

_'Drew!'_ I heard the gentle sound of flapping wings. That would be Masquerain and Flygon. I was surprised Flygon could even fly in the narrow tunnels. I stopped at the end of the tunnel, finding me out in the open again. There was a huge, and I mean HUGE, crevice in the middle of the two separate rock forms. More of those light blue rock pillars snaked their way across the gap.

_'Drew!'_ I looked to where her voice was coming from.

"Roserade!" I exclaimed, seeing her on the opposite side. She happily waved her rose hands at me and started to crawl along the rocks.

"Hang on," I said, "I'll come meet you halfway." I jumped out onto the rocks and started crawling along them, carefully gripping tightly when I felt a gust of wind batter against me. It was strong. Really strong. And Roserade was a light Pokémon, it would only take an unsuspecting blast to knock her off. I looked down to see nothing but more of the gap for a long way down. If she fell off… No! I got up, determined to reach her.

_'Help!'_ she cried in horror as she lost her balance. And of course, the cliché moment came and the gust of wind knocked her off. Arceus. Of course. I ran forwards.

"Flygon!" I yelled. I jumped out and caught Roserade in my arms, falling off in the process.

"Flygon!" I called again desperately. I looked up to see that Flygon was hovering above the pillars, looking down at me in remorse. Of course the gaps weren't big enough for him to fit.

"Grasshead!" someone screamed. I barely heard the whoosh of something brushing passed me. All I know is that someone wrapped their arm around me and was suddenly swung up to safety. I held Roserade close as the person pushed me away. It was Kidd.

"Thanks Kidd," I said. Wait. If Kidd was here?

"Hang on, I have to get the others," she said. She swung back. Lucario skilfully jumped over all the gaps and my two Pokémon flew towards me. How I envied not being able to fly sometimes. Roserade rubbed her face against me. I laughed.

"I finally found you!" I exclaimed, hugging her tightly.

_'I didn't doubt you'd come for me Drew. We promised we'd never leave each other,'_ she said.

"I missed you," I said.

_'Yeah, yeah, me too,'_ she said, pushing away from me, _'no need to get all mushy on me.'_ Lucario was watching me in interest.

"Oh Roserade, this is Lucario," I said, "he helped me find you. Lucario, this is my Roserade."

_'Nice to meet you,'_ Roserade said, sticking out one of her rosed hands.

**_Hello._** He took her hand and shook it before quickly releasing it. I got the feeling Lucario wasn't a very touchy Pokémon.

'Mew!' I turned in shock. It was a Mew.

_'Mew here has been looking after me,'_ Roserade said,_ 'I had a great time and for some reason he doesn't want to leave me.'_ I heard the sound of Kidd landing again.

"Grasshead!" Only one person called me that. I turned, smiling. I froze. It wasn't who I thought it was. There was Kidd, Misty and Meowth. I stopped smiling.

"We gotta get out of here," Kidd yelled, "Regice is right across from us." As if to prove to point, Regice shot an ice beam that froze just above our heads. I turned and started running, the others following behind me.

"Where are the others?" I asked. Kidd looked away. My heart pounded in my chest. Kidd stopped me and placed her hands on both of my shoulders.

"We found Misty and Meowth," Kidd said. I could see that, but they both looked sad. Meowth looked like he was trying to hold a brave face, while Misty's eyes were damp and red.

"What happened to the others?" I repeated. Misty gasped.

"It's the orange things!" she exclaimed, pointing.

"Those blood cells ate your friends," Kidd said. I backed away from her, hitting the wall behind me.

"Even May?" I asked, even though I knew the answer. She wasn't with them. Kidd nodded solemnly. I turned and smashed my fist against the wall, not caring at that moment about the pain that shot straight up my fingers, through wrist and up my arm. Anything was better than this deep pain in my chest, like someone was ever so slowly twisting a knife in my heart.

**_We gotta move Drew._** I bit my lip before running to follow Lucario down another path.

"Apparently there's an exit ahead," Kidd said. Good. Escape would be bittersweet. We came out into a bright room, full of big blue crystals. Now that just reminded me of May's eyes.

"May…" I whispered. Roserade jumped from my arms, summoning a rose from habit. I shook my head. I took it gingerly between my fingers, wincing at the intense and sharp pain that shocked my bones.

"Not this time," I said sadly. I switched hands I was holding the rose with and looked at my injured one. The knuckles were covered in blood, scraped raw on the rocks. It was already starting to bruise. No doubt I'd broken something.

"It's a dead end," Meowth exclaimed. I couldn't see any way out.

**_I'll find an exit._** Lucario ran forwards.

"Look out!" I yelled. Too late. Registeel caught Lucario in his arms.

* * *

No-one's POV

Misty, Kidd and Drew gasped, not noticing the blood cells creeping up on them. Kidd groaned loudly as she was encased my one. Misty gasped in shock at the sudden sensation that surrounded her.

"Wait Kidd!" Drew yelled, "Misty!" Kidd released the two Weaviles she had.

"I'm afraid this is goodbye," she whispered. The Weavile bowed their heads as Kidd was sucked in and disappeared. Drew jumped as a bunch of water Pokémon were released next to him. Psyduck, Starmie, Politoed and Azurill. Drew turned, seeing that Misty had just released her Pokémon.

"Misty!" He yelled, desperate for someone to survive.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "I never remembered your name." She was sucked into the blood cell.

"It's Drew," he whispered.

**_Look out._** Drew turned, only to find himself getting engulfed by the blood cell. He released his other Pokémon, Absol and Butterfree, dropping the rose in the process.

"I'm sorry Roserade," he whispered. Roserade jumped and grabbed onto his uninjured hand.

**_No! Drew!_**

"I'll miss you," Drew said, "and I'm sorry that I had to break my promise like this. Take care of yourself and the others." His head was pulled under.

**_Drew!_** Lucario broke free of his bonds. Drew's hand slipped from Roserade's grasp as Drew disappeared. Roserade knelt where Drew has disappeared. Roserade started crying hysterically.

* * *

**A/N: Drew punched a wall. A jagged wall. Not a smart move. Someone I knew once punched a wall and broke his finger, and that was a FLAT wall. I can only imagine what sort of mess Drew's hand would be for punching a sharp wall like that.**


	12. Saving the tree

**Saving the tree**

No-one's POV

"Dey're gone," Meowth said in disbelief. Lucario put his hand on Roserade's head. She shrugged it off, trying to dig at the ground.

**_You really care about him don't you?_** Roserade nodded. Mew floated, picking up the rose Drew had dropped. Mew glowed green, closing his eyes. He held the rose tightly and went up to a large crystal, touching the tip of it. One by one all the crystals around the tree started to glow the same colour green. One by one each of the people came back in the order they disappeared. Jessie, James, Max, Brock, May, Ash, Kidd, Misty and finally Drew. All their Pokémon happily chattered as they got their trainers back. May, Ash, Kidd, Brock and James hugged their Pokémon happily before returning them.

"We have to go find the others now," Brock said.

"Right," Said Ash with a small blush on his face. The others looked at him, a little surprised, but shrugged it off.

Roserade lunched herself at Drew, hugging him tightly.

"I thought we weren't going to get all mushy," Drew teased, hugging his Pokémon back.

_'Shut up you idiot,'_ Roserade cried in her language, _'You were dead for a moment.'_ Drew was knocked back by all his other Pokémon, not wanting to miss out on all the affection.

"Ouch," Drew hissed in pain at having his damaged hand hit the ground again. His Pokémon backed away, each waiting patiently as Drew one by one returned them all, except Roserade. Regice, Regirock and Registeel turned and went down a different tunnel, returning to their original guard positions. Drew got up off the ground.

"Why'd you think we were set free?" Misty asked.

"Cause Mew reversed de immune system," Meowth said, "told it yous weren't germs after all so it spat ya right back out. Someting about needing ya."

"I understand," Kidd said suddenly, "Mew and the tree of beginning are symbiotic creatures. They depend on each other for survival." A patch of orange flashed across the crystals. Mew floated down to Drew, slowly and weakly.

"Thanks for everything Mew," Drew said. Mew feverishly dropped the rose he was holding and sank to the ground. Kidd bent down to pick the Pokémon up as the crystals around them turned orange, black and disintegrated.

"What's wrong Mew?" Meowth asked. Kidd put her hand on Mew's head, jerking it away shortly after.

"He's sick!" she exclaimed, "burning up." Everywhere in the tree, crystals were turning orange and black and slowly crumbling to pieces.

The Pokémon down below in the base of the tree were panicking, running wild in all directions.

Jessie and James clung to each other in fear.

May, Brock, Max and Ash were ducking away from falling crystals as they tried to get out into the open air again.

Back at Cameran Palace, the crystals were crumbling. The maid ran to her queen.

"Your highness, we should evacuate," the maid suggested.

"I'm afraid it's too late for that," Lady Ilene said, "Drew and his friends are caught right in the middle of this. I hope they're ok."

Back in the tree, Mew was slowly getting weaker.

"What's wrong Mew?" Meowth asked, "why's dis happenin?"

'Mew, mew, mew,' Mew said weakly.

"Da tree's goin inta shock," Meowth translated, "Bringin yous all back has put strain on da tree and now it's immune system is breakin down."

"Mew and the tree depend on each other for life," Kidd said, "If the tree doesn't make it, neither will Mew." Mew wriggled around and floated out of Kidd's arms.

'Mew, mew, mew,' Mew said, pointing.

"Mew wants us ta follow it ta da heart of da tree," Meowth said.

"Well, let's go," Misty said. Drew, Kidd, Lucario, Meowth, Roserade and Misty followed Mew as he slowly and weakly led the way down another tunnel to the very heart of the tree. They came to a large room, where Mew once again fell out of the air. This time Misty jumped forwards to catch him. The centre of the room had a large crystal structure, a stream of orange coloured energy going from it into the roof.

* * *

Drew's POV

**_Huh?_** Lucario looked around. He spotted something. He ran over to one of the smaller crystal structures and fingered a pair of gloves, similar to the ones I wore at the Cameran Palace dance.

**_Could it be? These are his gloves but…Sir Aaron._** I looked at the crystal structure, barely making out the feint outline of a person inside. Lucario raised his paw, a blue ball of aura forming in his hand. I was shocked to see the figure start to glow, the person in the crystal clear. It was Sir Aaron. At least I think it was.

**_It IS you._** He lowered his hands. Well, I guess that confirmed my suspicions.

"It is" I repeated.

"I see, after sealing Lucario in the staff, Sir Aaron came to this chamber," Kidd said, "but why here?"

"What's going on?" Misty asked. Oh yeah, she didn't know the whole thing.

"It's a long story," I said, "don't worry about it for now. Oh yeah, and my name's Drew. Just so you know."

"Drew!" Misty exclaimed, "I knew it started with a D, but I couldn't remember it. All I remember is May introducing you to me as grasshead. Sorry for that."

"Of course May would do that," I said. Roserade ran to one a time flower in the ground, waving her hands in the air and pointing to it. How did she know about these? I touched it. It opened. The blurry figure of Sir Aaron appeared in the room.

"Where are you?" He yelled, "Mew!" A loud screech was heard. Ho-oh appeared from one of the top levels. It shifted and appeared as Mew, floating down to stand in front of Sir Aaron.

"Mew," Sir Aaron said, "I realize that you and this tree are one. Please, take the power of my aura and save the people."

'Mew,' Mew said, nodding.

"Now!" Sir Aaron yelled, holding his hands up, "accept the aura." A ball of blue aura formed in his hands.

"The power of aura!" he yelled, the ball getting bigger, "will prevail." It got larger, wrapping around Mew. He held one hand over his heart as his figure started glowing and electric currents seemed to shock his body. He grunted in pain, his breathing becoming louder and heavier. Mew started to glow bright green. Sir Aaron screamed as the light shone out. The vision faded and the time flower closed.

"Sir Aaron sacrificed himself to save the kingdom and restore peace," Kidd pondered out loud, "he was a hero like the legends say." Lucario turned and knelt down by the crystal structure.

**_Forgive me for doubting you master._** Hang on. If Sir Aaron really was a hero, if he really did save the kingdom, did that mean all the hurt Lucario had been feeling was for nothing? My eyes widened at the realization. Lucario wasn't actually betrayed.

'Mew, mew, mew, mew, mew,' Mew said, floating out in front of Lucario.

**_There's a way to save the tree? If we use the power of aura?_**

'Mew, mew,' Mew agreed.

**_I'll help you Mew_**, Lucario said.

"Hold on Lucario," Kidd said, "If you use your aura, you could end up in the same suspended state as Sir Aaron."

**_Yes, I know._** I froze. He intended to sacrifice himself.

"Lucario," I said softly.

**_The aura is with me._** He closed his eyes, one paw and the flaps on his head raised. Like we had seen in the vision, a light blue ball of aura formed in Lucario's hands. It slowly got bigger, circling around Mew. It slowly got bigger, but then it shrunk and disappeared altogether.

**_It's not working. I'm not strong enough._** I jumped forwards, realizing something.

"Do you remember what you said about me at the palace ball room?" I asked, "You said my aura was like Sir Aaron's."

**_Drew._** I grabbed the gloves from the crystal. I pulled them on, wincing as it stung my injured hand.

"Now is the time to see if it's really true. If so, this might just work," I said. I held my hands up._ Aura is the living essence inside every creature._ Kidd's words circulated in my head. I held my hands up, ignoring the biting pain I was feeling. I stared hard at my hands. Living essence. I focused on pushing my energy out. I closed my eyes.

_'Drew,'_ Roserade said sadly. I felt a tingling sensation in my palms. A stinging feeling entered my chest. I opened my eyes to see a small ball of blue forming in my hands. Yes, it was working.

"Drew stop!" Misty yelled, "You'll end up destroying yourself!" My resolve didn't weaken. I had to do this.

"I know that," I said.

"What about Roserade?" Meowth asked, "Don't ya tink dat's a little mean. She was heartbroken when she tawt yous was dead."

"I'm sorry Roserade," I said. The ball in my hand grew.

_'It's ok Drew,'_ Roserade said bravely.

"What about May?" Kidd asked, "Haven't you seen the way she's cared for you. She'll be so hurt." I gulped. She just had to bring up May.

"Now is not the time to be selfish," I hissed, "if I don't do this, the tree will die. What will happen then?" I felt my chest tighten even more.

**_Drew._**

"I can't give up!" I yelled. I don't know if it was to convince myself or them. I winced as I pushed even more energy out towards Mew.

**_I'll help._** I felt a cool breeze brush over me. Lucario was adding his aura to mine. It was slowly getting larger, wrapping around Mew. I pushed even more as the wind got stronger, fighting against the pain I was feeling.

_'You've turned blue,'_ Roserade exclaimed. I felt something like electricity shock my body. I grunted in pain. I looked up to see Mew start to turn green. Almost there. I looked at Lucario. He was struggling. I couldn't do this to him. I moved around, pushing him out the way with my shoulder. He was knocked back to my satisfaction.

**_Drew! What are you doing?_**

"Leave the rest to me," I hissed.

**_Why are you doing this?_**

"Because, even though you weren't really betrayed," I grunted, "I know what it's like. I don't want you to feel it now." I gritted my teeth together.

**_Drew!_** I screamed loudly as I gave one final push. Mew light up fully, the aura around him going green. I was pushed back as he floated away and into the orange stream of energy. The room instantly changed, going from orange and black to green and blue again. The tree slowly started to repair itself. The crystals around me glowed, bright, green light shooting out from them. Thank goodness it was over. It just hurt so much.


	13. The boy with the aura

**The boy with the aura**

Misty's POV

The tree was back to normal. Thank goodness.

"Do yous tink I can stay with yous til I find my pals?" Meowth asked.

"Sure Meowth," I said. Mew floated out from the stream of energy.

"I think I'll keep this place a secret," Kidd said to Mew, "We wouldn't want it destroyed by tourists would we?"

"Thanks Mew," I said. He looked a lot healthier. Behind me, Drew grunted. I turned quickly. He dropped to the ground, leaning against the crystal structure Sir Aaron was trapped in.

"Drew, are you ok?" I asked. Blue electric currents shocked through his body and he winced in pain.

"I'll be fine," he said, "I just need to rest for a bit." He winced again as another shock of energy zapped him.

**_Drew, I'm sorry. It should've been me._**

"No," Drew said, "I told you, I'll be fine."

**_You're dying, how can you be fine?_**

"I just will be," Drew said, "trust me. I know what I'm doing." Drew's foot gently touched one of those flower things from before. Around us, another image formed. This time I saw Sir Aaron as he leant against the post. He took off the gloves, much like Drew had just done. Sir Aaron was also glowing like Drew, electric currents also shocking him.

"Lucario," Sir Aaron said softly, "forgive me."

**_I do master._**

"Please understand," Sir Aaron continued, "I had to seal you in the staff. I knew if I didn't you'd follow me and end up worse than me. You see, if you tried that, you'd end up dying."

**_But YOU ARE dying!_**

"One day," Sir Aaron said, "You will be released, in a better time. And I hope you will come here and find out the truth."

**_I know the truth now. I'm sorry._**

"You see, at the moment, I could survive," Sir Aaron said.

**_What? Then why did you die?_**

"But I would go through insufferable pains," Sir Aaron said, "so Mew has promised me one last favour. He's going to take my memories and my aura, meaning I will become suspended. One day, in the future, another boy will be given my aura as well as have his own. He will grow stronger and my aura will recover. He will be destined to release you from the staff. Mew will lead him here and together they can resurrect me, Mew with my memories and the boy with my aura. I hope you find this message so you know what will happen."

**_If only you could hear me. I want to tell you how much you mean to me._**

"Farewell for now Lucario," Sir Aaron finished, "you are more than just a student to me. You are my closest friend."

**_I feel the same way._** Sir Aaron gasped in pain at another shock.

"Ok Mew," he said, "I'm ready." Mew started to glow green. Sir Aaron screamed in pain. Mew touched his head. Green light transferred from his head to Mew. A ball of blue aura released itself from his body and Sir Aaron fell limp.

The vision faded and we were back into our own time. Lucario had tears streaming down his face.

**_I can't believe he would do this for me._** I looked at Drew, who was grinning. He'd stopped glowing.

"Drew?" I questioned.

**_Drew._**

"I'm that boy," Drew said, "I figured it out after I went over what you guys said back at the start of this whole journey. Now I can bring Sir Aaron back for you."

"Wait Drew," Kidd said, "You know, if you give Sir Aaron's aura back, you could die. You used your aura for the tree."

"It's a possibility," Drew said, "but I'm willing to make it."

**_Why?_**

"Because like I said before, nothing hurts more than betrayal or losing a close friend," Drew said, "Even though your betrayal wasn't really a betrayal, I don't want you to go through anymore unnecessary pain." Drew stood up.

"What do I tell May?" Kidd asked.

"Let her come see me alone," Drew answered, "trust me on this. And Misty, if I don't make it, tell May to take good care of my Pokémon. And tell her thank you for everything. She'll understand what I mean."

"I will," I promised. Drew knelt down to Roserade, patting her on the head with his good hand. Roserade brushed away her tears that had started to form.

"May will take good care of you," Drew said to her, "I know." Roserade rubbed herself against him and stepped back. Drew nodded at Mew.

"Ok Mew, I'm ready," he said. Mew nodded back. Mew started to glow green. Drew spread his arms out. A bright blue ball of aura released itself from Drew's chest. Drew screamed loudly in pain. Mew let it levitate in front of him. He floated to Sir Aaron. The crystal melted away. The aura surrounded Sir Aaron. Mew touched his paw to Sir Aaron's head. The green glow surrounded Sir Aaron's body. When it faded down, Drew collapsed to the ground, glowing bright blue. He screamed again as a large shock of pain entered his body.

**_Sir Aaron?_**

"Lucario?" I turned to see that Sir Aaron was opening his eyes.

"How long has it been?" he asked, rubbing his head, "it's good to see you again Lucario."

"Wow, it really worked," Kidd said, "Sir Aaron. Wow."

"Oh please, don't call me that," he said, "just Aaron is fine. I have a feeling that formal titles aren't really necessary in this age."

**_Aaron. I can't believe you did all that for me._**

"Of course," Aaron said, "you are my best friend."

**_The feeling is returned._** Drew moaned weakly as he writhed on the ground in obvious pain. I knelt by him, trying to soothe him. He didn't listen.

"Is this the boy who brought me back?" Aaron asked, getting up and moving to Drew. Drew stopped wriggling around.

"Yes," Drew managed to whisper hoarsely, "I'm Drew. I'm glad that it worked."

"I'm glad too Drew," Aaron said, "I'm sorry I put you through any pain to restore me."

"That's ok," Drew groaned. His shoulders tensed as another shock of blue electricity raked through his body. I bit my lip. This was really happening. Poor May.

"Why is he not recovering?" Aaron asked, looking concerned now.

"The tree of beginning started collapsing," I said, "He used his aura to restore it and then he still decided to resurrect you."

"What!" Aaron exclaimed, "Why? He should've stopped. He might not recover."

"I had to," Drew said, "Lucario didn't need the type of hurt I felt. He'd already experience enough of that by false interpretation. Besides, it's not like I would be giving anyone that type of pain." Oh but you are, I thought, May and Roserade are going to be devastated.

"You sacrificed yourself for me?" Aaron asked. Drew nodded, hissing as another shock took over.

"Thank you," Aaron said, "I would give you some of my aura to save you, but I'm afraid if I transfer again, neither of us will make it."

"It's ok," Drew said, "I'll be fine."

**_You are NOT fine! Have you forgotten you are DYING! _**Lucario bent down to Drew.

"Are you crazy?" Aaron exclaimed. Drew chuckled weakly, cutting himself off as a stronger shock pulsed through him.

"Maybe," Drew said, "maybe."

"You know what, let me try," Aaron said, "I can't stand seeing you suffer for me." He peeled his gloves on.

"Don't you dare," Drew growled. Aaron stopped. Drew put his injured hand on Aaron's arm, wincing as it touched.

"What did you do to your hand!" Aaron exclaimed, seeing the bloody mess.

"I may or may not have punched a wall," Drew said.

"Why would you do that?" Aaron said.

"I needed something to redirect the pain," Drew said, "from here." He put his other hand over his heart.

**_You've gone through so much Drew. You deserve a peaceful rest._**

"Thank you Lucario," Drew said, smiling. His lips slowly curved up into a smile as his eyes closed. The blue shocks and glowing stopped. He lay there, unmoving.

"It's over," I whispered. I slowly stood up. It was really over.

* * *

**A/N: It's a shorter chapter, but if I had to cut it here. The rest of the chapters wouldn't work out so nicely if I'd let it continue. Just saying. Another sad chapter! Wah!**


	14. A couple of couples

**A/N: Just so you know, I'll be moving away from the movie plot. The rest of this, I'm flying solo with my own plot for the rest of the chapters.**

* * *

**A couple of couples**

Misty's POV

"Misty! Drew! Kidd! Lucario! Where are you?"

"That's Ash!" I exclaimed.

"Meowth!"

"It's Jessie and James," Meowth exclaimed. I bent down to pick up Roserade. She batted my hands away and stared intently at Drew.

"Guess she wants to spend a little time alone," Kidd said, "We should find the others."

"Right." I said. I walked out, following Kidd. Aaron and Lucario looked at each other for a moment before following.

"We have to introduce you to our friends," I said. I finally came out into the open air. I looked up to see Ash, Max, May, Brock, Jessie and James.

"I guess from now on we're opposites," I said to Meowth.

"Maybe," Meowth said, "I don't tink I could go back ta stealing from you so easily. We might be quittin Team Rocket soon anyway."

"Why?" I asked.

"I'll let Jessie and James tell ya," Meowth said. I smiled at Ash. He waved at me and blushed. I ran up the hill.

"Ash!" I called. I hugged him tightly.

"Hey Misty," he said. He pulled away and blushed. Ahh, he hadn't forgotten his words. Well good, neither had I.

"Hey Ash, I got something to say," I said.

"What?" he asked.

"I love you," I whispered in his ear.

"You do?" he questioned, looking more shocked than disbelieving.

"I do," I confirmed, "you were just too dense to realize it." He scratched the back of his head, laughing nervously.

"What do I do now?" he asked.

"Oh you know, ask me to be your girlfriend or something," I said sarcastically.

"Right. Misty, do you want to be my girlfriend," he said confidently.

"Of course," I said. He frowned for a moment.

"Is there something else I'm missing?" he asked, "I feel like there's something else I should be doing." I rolled my eyes.

"Let me show you," I said. I leaned up and gave him a quick kiss.

"Oh, that's it," he said.

"You guys," Max groaned, "please save all lovey stuff til later."

"Wow," Brock said, "is that Sir Aaron?"

"Please, there's no need for formality," Aaron laughed, "just call me Aaron."

"How are you alive?" Ash burst out.

"Drew brought me back," Aaron explained, "you see, I knew once I saved the tree with my aura, that I could recover, but it would take time and I would suffer severe amounts of pain and possible loss of memory. So I asked Mew to help me. Mew took my aura and protected my memories. It was supposed to be that my aura would be given to a boy sometime in the future. Then he would, with Mew's help, bring me back after Mew lured him to this place. So Drew did."

"Where is Drew?" May asked. I looked at Kidd and Aaron then Lucario.

"He said to thank you for everything," I said quietly.

"You aren't answering me," May said, "Where is he?"

**_He gave a tremendous amount of aura away._**

"What does that mean?" May asked, "Why can't you just tell me? Where is Drew?"

"He's still in there," I said, pointing. I don't understand why Drew had wanted May to find out so harshly.

"Well, what are we standing here for?" Ash asked, "Let's go get him."

"He said, he'd just want May," I said, stopping Ash, "she needs to go alone."

* * *

May's POV

I shot Misty a wary look. Why wasn't everyone acting so weirdly? I walked passed them to go find Drew. Why didn't he just come out? Did he find Roserade? Maybe they were having a reunion. I wouldn't want to interrupt that. But he had asked for me. I shook my head. I walked through the tunnel that Misty pointed to. I saw him. My heart stopped. He was lying on the ground, unmoving. His eyes were closed tightly. I ran over to him and knelt down. Please let this be a nightmare. I went to take his hand, but stopped. It was bloody, bruised and I could see the bones in his fingers sticking out at an odd angle. I could see the white of his bones through the scraped off skin. What had he done to his hand? Roserade nudged me. I looked at her. She handed me a red rose.

"From Drew right?" I asked, my voice breaking in the middle. Roserade nodded. I felt like crying then and there. All I could do though was stare at his hand. The one that had all the blood on it.

"Drew," I whispered softly, "What did you do?"

"I brought Aaron back."

"Great, do I miss him so much that I'm hearing his voice?" I asked Roserade. She giggled and put her rose hands over her mouth.

"Figures none of you would check for a pulse or anything," he said. I frowned. Why would I do that?

"You idiot May," he said, "Look at me."

"I am," I hissed, "get out of my head."

"May…Look at my face," he said. I leaned over him. I gasped, seeing his emerald eyes lock onto me.

"What?" I exclaimed, "Aren't you dead?" He chuckled.

"They just assumed," he said, "I was just resting, letting my aura recover."

"What happened?" I asked.

"I saved the tree of beginning and I brought Aaron back," he said, "they thought I'd kill myself doing it, but I somehow knew I wouldn't. I'm not that easily destructible."

"Why didn't you tell them?" I asked, "They all think you're dead."

"Well, apart from being so exhausted that I couldn't move," he said, "I couldn't speak. I felt too weak. And I wanted to see you again alone."

"You wanted to see me?" I questioned.

"Of course," he said. He shifted and pushed himself to sit up, wincing as his injured hand moved.

"What did you do to your hand?" I asked.

"I punched a wall," he said, "A really jagged rocky wall."

"Why did you do that?" I asked.

"Kidd just told me you'd been eaten by one of those blood cell things," he said, "I thought I was never going to see you again. I needed something to redirect the pain from my chest. It hurt you know."

"You idiot," I said, shaking my head, "let's get out of here then. You need to get that attended to. Not to mention, everyone thinks you're dead."

"Ok then," he said. I got up. I offered my hand to him. He took it with his good hand and I yanked him to his feet. I found his arms around me in a hug.

"Thanks," he whispered.

"I didn't do anything," I said.

"No, but I needed you," he said.

* * *

"Hey guys," I called cheerfully.

"Hey May," Ash said. His eyes widened. He pointed to Drew. Everyone turned around.

"DREW!" everyone exclaimed. Lucario ran and tackled Drew to the ground.

"Ouch Lucario," Drew hissed, "hand." Lucario jumped away.

**_Sorry, I was happy to see you._**

"You were dead though," Kidd said, looking confused.

"I was never dead," Drew said, crossing his arms, "you just never checked my pulse."

"But the flashing and stuff stopped," Misty said.

"Yes, and that was the end of the aura disruption," Drew said, "I started recovering after that."

"Glad you made it," Aaron said, "I was feeling horrible about you sacrificing yourself for me."

"I knew I wasn't going to die," Drew said.

**_How?_**

"Please tell me you had a little more faith in me," Drew said, pretending to look hurt, "you know I'm stronger than that." Drew picked himself off the ground, wincing again as his hand moved.

"Brock," I called, "can you help him?" I pointed to Drew's messy hand. Brock frowned.

"We need to get back to the car first," he said.

"You just can't stay away from injuries can you?" I whispered in his ear, "first your head, now your hand. Do you need someone to look after you to make sure you don't hurt yourself?"

"Are you offering?" he asked back.

"Maybe," I said, shrugging.

"Well, if your offering, I'll say yes," he said, "yes I do need someone to look after me."

"I guess I'm travelling with you then," I said, laughing.

"So Meowth," Misty said, "Are you going to tell me what you mean?"

"I said I'll let Jessie and James tell ya demselves," he said.

"Tell them what?" Jessie asked.

"You know," Meowth said, "bout maybe quitin Team Rocket for good."

"You guys are quitting?" Ash questioned, looking shocked.

"Well, we've made our decision Meowth," Jessie said.

"Decision for what?" Misty asked.

"You can tell her Meowth," James said, "we don't mind. Makes it a little easier for us."

"Jessie and James are getting hitched," Meowth exclaimed.

"Getting hitched," I repeated, "you mean you guys are..?"

"Yep," Jessie confirmed.

"Let me see," I said. She held out her hand for me to see. I gasped at the simple silver diamond ring on her finger.

"Aww, I'm so happy for you," Misty said, crowding next to me to see.

"Yeah, congratulations guys," I added.

"You girls are acting like you've known them for ages," Ash complained.

"Technically we have," Misty pointed out.

"No I mean, you guys are acting like you're best friends," Ash said.

"Well, engagement is a big part of a girl's life," I said, "It doesn't matter who it is."

"So you guys are quitting Team Rocket because of this?" Misty asked.

"Yeah," James said, "the pay is too unstable to support a family. And Giovanni wouldn't let us get married anyway."

"And you're taking Meowth?" Misty asked hopefully.

"Of course," Jessie snorted, "we wouldn't leave him behind. He's our pal."

"Wow you guys, I'm so excited for you," I said. I honestly was. I turned to look at Drew. He looked like he was in a lot of pain, cradling his hand with the other. That's right, he was still hurt. Why didn't he say anything?

"Um…Guys? Drew's still hurt," I said, "Can we head back now?"

"I wish we could," Jessie said, "but Regirock kinda destroyed your car." Mew hovered around us. He pushed us all together. There was a blink of white light. I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I found myself in some sort of attic. I guess Mew had taken us back to the kingdom.

"Thanks Mew," I said. It nodded and soon, it disappeared again.

"Now, let's get you fixed up," I said to Drew.

* * *

**A/N: Because you know I couldn't have them thinking Drew was dead when he actually wasn't. I'm sorry guys, but I never actually said Drew was dead. Like I said, Misty and stuff just assumed. Sorry. Hey, but at least he's alive right? And I know having Jessie and James get married seems a little random at this point, but I needed a reason to make them 'good'. I just couldn't let Meowth go back to being the 'bad guy' after all he'd gone through with Misty. It seemed inappropriate to make them on opposing teams again.**


	15. Finding out the truth

**Finding out the truth**

Drew POV

I felt so much better now. My hand had been bandaged up and I was on pain killers to stop it from hurting. May had sat with me through the entire thing. The others had gone to the queen to tell her about Aaron and to tell her that we were all fine, but May stayed behind for me. She had held my good hand when the doctor had put the disinfectant on it. She hadn't made a sound when I'd squeezed her hand tightly in pain as he righted my broken bones. The pain killers had only removed some of that pain. She'd patted it reassuringly as it was plastered and bandaged up. Now she was waiting for the doctor to tell me that I was allowed to leave. Really, I was waiting for him to come back with my present for May. I'd found I still had the crystal in my pocket. I'd asked the doctor to take it to the jeweller for me, sending him with some money and a note telling him exactly what I wanted done to it. May didn't have a clue. The doctor came back in; a brown paper bag in his hand.

"Here are some pain killers for the next two months," he said, winking at me, "you can go now." Ahh, so it was hidden in here.

"Thanks," I said, standing up. May stood up also, thanking him for taking care of me.

"There you are Drew!" Kidd exclaimed.

"Hey Kidd," I said, "all fixed up." I held up my plastered hand as if to prove the point.

"I just wanted to say goodbye," Kidd said, "I've gotta head out."

"Bye Kidd," I said, "It was nice of you to come with me to rescue Roserade."

"No problem Drew," She said, "It was a great experience, but like I said, I've gotta move. Next adventure and all." She winked at me and held her fingers up in a salute.

"You'd better go," May said, "before Brock comes and begs you to stay."

"Yeah," she said, "Well, best of luck." With that she waved and walked away.

"Hey May, Drew, there you are!" I saw Misty, Ash, Brock and Max running over towards us.

"Hey guys," May said, "where's Lucario and Aaron?"

"Talking to the queen," Max said, "they had a little business to sort out."

"Right," I said, "well, I'm tired. It's been an exhausting day." I yawned and stretched as if to prove the point.

"Oh, I'm sure you're tired," Misty said, "that whole thing with the aura must've been tiring. Don't worry; Ash told me the whole story. And I just want to say, that move of yours took guts. I'd have never thought of sacrificing myself for someone else."

"Are we constantly going to remind me of that?" I groaned, "You make it sound like I'm some kind of hero."

"You ARE a hero Drew," Ash said, "you saved the tree and Aaron."

"It's what anyone would've done if they had to," I said. Ash and Misty shook their heads.

"Have you seen Kidd anywhere?" Brock asked.

"She just left," I said. Brock hung his head dejectedly.

"C'mon, you still like this?" Max questioned, "Get a life."

"Hey Misty!" Meowth yelled. Oh great. Were they ever going to let me rest?

"Hey twerps," Jessie said, "Meowth just wanted to say goodbye to Misty."

"You said my name," Misty said, her eyes widening, "What is this?"

"You'll always be a twerpette," Jessie said, "but since this might be the last time you see us, we thought we might call you by your name, just once."

"So Jessie, Jimmy and I are heading out now," Meowth said, "I just wanna say, yous was fun ta hang out wid. Maybe one day we'll meet again."

"No more stealing Pikachu from us," James said.

"So this is goodbye," Jessie said, "no more preparing for trouble."

"And make it double."

"No more protecting the world from devastation."

"No more uniting within our nation."

"No more denying truth and love."

"We're no longer reaching to the stars above."

"Jessie."

"James."

"Team Rocket no more blasting off at the speed of light."

"I guess now we've quit, we won't have to fight."

"Meowth, dat's right."

"Just wanted to say it one more time with a bit of a twist," Jessie explained.

"So goodbye Ash," James said, "Misty, May, Brock, Max, and…can't remember your name. Sorry grassy."

"It's Darien," Jessie hissed.

"Right, bye Darien," James corrected.

"Actually it's Drew, but ok," I said. All three members shot me an embarrassed grin, before they turned to leave.

"Bye Team Rocket!" Ash yelled, waving at them.

"Oh yeah," Meowth said, running to Misty, "Jessie and James wanted ta tank ya for lookin afta me. Here." He handed her a letter with a stamp.

"Yous invited ta da wedding," he told her, "and if yous want, I guess you could bring ya twerpy friends as well."

"Thanks Meowth," Misty said, "Tell them I'll definitely be coming."

"And one more ting twerpette," Meowth said, stopping once more, "remember dat game a MASH we played. You neva know, it might just come true." Misty blushed and I wondered what he meant.

"What did he mean Misty?" Ash asked when Meowth and the other two Team Rocket members disappeared around the corner.

"Uh…Don't worry about it," she said. I yawned loudly.

"Come on," May said, pulling my good hand. I followed after her.

"You know I don't need you to come with me?" I questioned.

"Yeah, I know," she said, "but I want to make sure you rest." I rolled my eyes, but let her lead me away anyway. Maybe she could play with my hair again.

* * *

**_Drew._**

"Go away, I'm still sleeping," I mumbled.

**_Drew._**

"Can't it wait until I wake up?" I muttered.

**_Drew, just get up._** I groaned and raised my head from my pillow. I blinked as I looked around. I frowned in disappointment. There was no May around. She must've left. Instead, there was Aaron and Lucario, both looking at me.

"Why'd you have to go and wake me?" I asked.

"The queen wants to talk to you," Aaron said.

"Really, couldn't she wait until after I'd woken up," I said.

**_She said it was urgent._** I sighed. I swung my feet out of bed.

"How urgent?" I asked.

"Urgent enough to send both of us to wake you up," Aaron replied, "she looked like she was in some distress."

"I'll go," I sighed. I pushed myself off the bed and stood up. I felt pretty disgusting actually. All sticky and there was a really bad taste in my mouth. I guess that's what happens when you fall asleep before cleaning yourself up.

"Where's May?" I asked.

**_She's in her room. She went to clean herself up and take a nap._**

"Ok," I said.

"Why'd you want to know?" Aaron teased, "Is she your sweetheart?" I blushed.

**_Yeah, something like that._** My jaw dropped.

"Lucario!" I exclaimed.

**_What? It's true. You can't hide it from me. You really like that girl. You act all lovey to her._** I blushed. I didn't act lovey to her did I?

**_You do_**, Lucario said as if he had read my thoughts.

"I better go see the queen," I said, "after I've cleaned myself up. Now get out of here."

**_Whatever Drew. You can't hide it forever._**

"I never said I was," I replied, "now leave please. I gotta clean myself first. I feel terrible." Aaron gave me a look before they both went out, shutting the door. I rubbed my head with my good hand. If I wasn't careful someone else was bound to tell May before I had the chance. That wasn't what I wanted. Well, I'd better clean up now.

* * *

I walked down to the throne room where we had talked to Lucario when he had first come out of the staff. I looked at the big wooden doors. This was where she was, waiting to talk to me. I still hadn't figured out what she wanted to talk to me about. There really wasn't anything I could think of. Maybe to thank me for bringing back Aaron, but that wasn't important. Ahh, who am I kidding? I'm right here! I don't need to guess anymore. I pushed the doors open and walked in. She was pacing along the ground. They were right. She did look distressed. The door slammed shut behind me. She looked up.

"Oh thank Arceus you're alright!" she exclaimed, running towards me. This puzzled me. She always looked the type to be brought up never to run. She embraced me tightly. I was even more confused.

"Oh Drew," she sighed. Was it just me or did it sound like she'd started to cry.

"Um…Yes?" I said. I didn't know what to do. Should I hug her back? Do I just stand here? Or what?

"I was so scared," she said, "When I didn't see you come in with the others I thought the worst. They told me the whole story. You could've killed yourself!"

"Um…" I trailed off, really unsure of what to do now.

"You had me so worried," she whispered. Worried? What was she worried for?

"Ok?" I said, trying to wriggle myself out of her grasp. She stepped back and looked at me, hurt flashing in her eyes for a moment. What? Why would she be hurt? She barely knows me.

"Oh Drew," she sighed again. She reached out to stroke my face. I turned away. Just what was she doing?

"Ilene, don't be so hurt. You know he doesn't know." I tensed, hearing the voice I recognized. Hearing the voice I'd been hoping never to hear again.

"Don't know what? Dad?" I spat, looking up to see the man who I thought I'd never see again.

"Or should I even call you that?" I asked; my voice filled with venom. I glared at him. He still looked mostly the same. Flecks of silver were speckled through his hair and he looked tired and worn. Other than that, he was exactly the same.

"Drew, I missed you," he said, "don't be hostile." How dare he?

"Missed me?" I shouted, losing my cool, "Missed me! You left me! You never missed me or you wouldn't have left in the first place!"

"Please Drew, I-"

"No!" I yelled cutting him off, "I don't care what you have to say! I waited for you! I waited for two days! If Roselia hadn't come out, I would've died!"

"I see she kept her promise then," he said sadly. How dare he! How dare he show up like this after all this time?

"Don't bring her into this!" I shouted, "She has nothing to do with it! YOU are the one who left me. YOU were the one who abandoned me on my _birthday_. Did you even care that I could've died? Did you! Did you think about the consequences of your actions! I hate you! I never wanted to see you again after that! Everything was I lie! And I hate you for it! I never ever wanted to see you again!"

"I know you have every right to be upset after what I did, but please just let me explain-"

"Shut up!" I yelled, completely angry now, "I don't want to hear anything you have to say!"

"No Drew, you will listen to me. You may not like me, but I'm still your father," he said. I clenched my teeth together.

"You lost the right of that title when you left me," I hissed.

"Drew," Lady Ilene said softly, "please just hear him out." It took all my control not to yell at her as well. She was a queen after all.

"What do you care?" I asked, "Is this what's important? Because if this is what you brought me for, I'm going. I'm not ready to go through this again." I turned to head straight back out the door again, but it was locked. They had locked me in here now!

"Ok, you know what fine!" I yelled, "Speak and try to justify yourself! Nothing you're going to say is going to change my mind!" My dad sighed loudly and rubbed his hand across his head.

"You didn't know," he said, "you've never known to keep you safe." I hissed through my clenched teeth, trying not to yell again. I said I'd let him explain.

"You see, Ilene is your mother," he said. What? I turned to the woman. Just a moment ago her embrace had seemed strange. If that was true, it would make sense.

"What?" I asked; my voice cracking. I had a mother after all? I always thought she was dead.

"Why?" I asked, "she…I have…I always thought…Why didn't you tell me!"

"Drew," she said softly. Why had I only grown up with my dad then? Hadn't she wanted me? Was I not good enough? That hurt a lot. I bit my lip, swallowing the lump in my throat. She reached out towards me again. I backed off.

"Why wasn't I told," I hissed, "Why did you let me think she was dead? Why wasn't I raised here?"

"I couldn't," Ilene said, her eyes filling with tears.

"Drew," my dad said, "you realize that having her as your mum, you're a prince?" I stopped. I was? I was!

"What's that got to do with anything?" I asked. My dad sighed.

"When you were just a baby, there were threats going around of killing you," my dad explained, "of killing the heir to the throne. It was hard, but Ilene thought it was for the best that you be hidden away. She loved you too much to have those sorts of pressures of threats and plots against be placed upon you at such a young age. I took you out to raise you like a normal boy. You wouldn't know. No-one else would ever find out where the lost prince went." Threats? Plots? Someone had wanted to kill me?

"What?" I asked, "You still left me though. Why did you do that?"

"I know I left you," my dad said, "and it was the hardest thing I had to do. You remember I gave you Roselia when you were five? When she was just a Budew?"

"Yes," I replied.

"That was so you could have someone to protect you," My dad said, "I knew I'd have to leave you when you were 10. I wouldn't be able to protect you from anything anymore. I wouldn't be able to defend you from everything that came to you once people started to figure out that you were the missing prince. So Roselia was my way to protect you. She formed a deep bond with you. She never knew about your real identity, only that she was supposed to protect you no matter what. I had to leave you. If you thought that I'd just left you, you wouldn't want to talk about me. You wouldn't raise as much suspicion about yourself. I'm sorry Drew. Please. It was the only way we could protect you."

* * *

**A/N: I know, Team Rocket's motto is lame, but I felt like I HAD to include it somewhere. Well, this seems a little out of place after that rather overemotional chapter. I had planned this all along from the start, just so you know that. It wasn't a random in the moment decision. I had always planned Lady Ilene to be Drew's mum. It seemed a possible option to me.**


	16. Family again?

**Family again?**

Drew's POV

Protect me. My breathing came out hard and fast. So what? My whole life was a lie?

"Daddy? Mummy?" A small voice asked. I turned to the door. It rattled and opened. A little girl, about 4 walked through. She had light green hair and hazel eyes. She was short, wearing a soft pink nightgown.

"That's your sister," Ilene whispered to me, "She's our little secret. No-one can know about her. Not after what happened with you." The girl entered the room more, looking around. Her eyes locked on me and she grinned. Her face lit up and she ran to me.

"Big brother!" she yelled. She flung herself at me and I barely had time to brace myself before she collided with me. I looked her over. This was my sister? And I hadn't even known?

"Mummy and daddy told me you'd come back one day," she said, snuggling herself against me, "I couldn't wait to meet my big brother." I froze. She'd known about me. I hadn't known about her. How could they do this to me? Just expect me to accept all this and move on like nothing had happened.

"Drew?" Ilene said. She was my mum, but I still couldn't think of her like that.

"Big brother?" the girl questioned, "don't you like me? I like you. Please like me." Like her? I didn't know her. All I knew was she was my sister. I didn't even know her name!

"Are you ok Drew?" my dad asked. I gently shook the girl away from my leg, my body shaking. I shook my head, backing up. The girl ran to Ilene, tugging on her hand.

"Is my brother alright?" she asked, "What's wrong with him." Ilene looked at me, her expression pained.

"I don't know," she whispered back.

"Drew?" my dad questioned. I shook my head again. They looked like a happy family. One that didn't involve me just because I hadn't known. I was no part of this. They couldn't just expect this to turn back to normal did they?

"I-I-I," I stuttered, "You know what? No. I need time. I'm not part of this." I turned and fled from the room, not even caring about the tears that stung at the edges of my eyes. This was just too much.

**_Drew?_** I ran straight passed Lucario and Aaron. I just ran and kept running until I found the room where I was staying. I flung myself on the bed, being careful not to hit my injured wrist. How could they do this to me? How? I can't believe it. I buried my head in the pillow and cried. I hadn't cried for ages, not since my dad had left me. But this was too much to take. Too much.

* * *

May's POV

**_May?_** I opened my eyes to see Lucario leaning slightly over me.

"What?" I asked groggily, rubbing my eyes. He looked worried.

**_Aaron said I shouldn't bother you, but I think it's urgent._**

"What is it?" I asked, sitting up.

**_It's Drew._**

"What about him?" I asked, feeling worried.

**_I think something's upsetting him. Lady Ilene called him in to talk to him in private. He ran out just before, looking really upset and maybe even angry._**

"Do you know what she said?" I asked, jumping out of bed.

**_I don't know. He's in his room and he hasn't said anything to anyone who's tried to talk to him. He's just staying quiet with his face down in his pillow._**

"I wonder what's wrong?" I pondered out loud.

**_I don't know. I've honestly never seen anyone this upset. I was hoping maybe you could talk to him._**

"Me?" I questioned, already pulling my shoes on.

**_He seems to be more open with you. Even if you don't tell anyone else, I think just talking to you might help him._**

"I'll try," I said.

**_Thanks. He really seems more open with you than anyone else. He trust you._** That got my heart to flutter in my chest. He trusts me. I finished tugging my shoes on. Forget the bandana. I don't need it. I'd just have to talk to him with messy bed hair. Maybe that would get him to laugh.

"Ok, I'll go see him now," I said.

**_Good luck._** I nodded to him and walked out from the room I was staying in. I walked down the hallway to where I knew he was. Outside was Brock, Max, Ash and Misty. They were all pressed against the door.

"Drew, talk to us," Misty pleaded. I didn't hear a response.

"Aww, c'mon Drew," Ash said. There was still nothing.

"Is the door open?" I asked them. Max nodded at me.

"May?" Brock questioned, "Yeah, we just didn't want to invade his space if he didn't want us in there. You know he doesn't know us that well."

"I'll handle this, you guys go," I said. They nodded and moved away, but didn't go away.

"Drew," I said, knocking on the door, "I'm coming in whether you like it or not." I opened it and before the others could peek in, I shut it behind me. I saw him, still face down, his shoulders shaking slightly.

"Drew?" I questioned, coming closer and touching his back lightly. He jumped slightly and didn't respond.

"You know I'm not going to leave until you talk to me," I said. He muttered something, it being muffled by the pillow.

"I can't hear you with your face like that," I said, "look at me." He rolled over and I saw his face. It was red and damp, as if he'd been…crying?

"Oh Drew, what happened?" I asked.

"My dad," he hissed. I knelt down on his bed as he pushed himself so he was sitting up.

"Drew?" I questioned, "Are you ok?"

"I don't know if I'm ready," he said, his dark eyes looking away from me.

"It's ok," I said, "I'm not going to force you before you're ready." I reached out to him and put my hand on his cheek. He looked up at me again, his eyes reflecting the deep pain and hurt he felt. My heart reached out to him. He slowly and tenderly reached out and pulled me close to him, wrapping his arms around me. I rested my head gently against him as his grip tightened. He was so hurt. It just broke my heart. I curled my arms around him, hoping to help him know that I was here for him. I moved up, tucking my head under his chin.

"It'll be ok," I whispered, "whatever it is."

"Just let me hold you for a bit," he whispered back, his voice cracking slightly, "it makes me feel safe." I nodded, knowing he'd feel it. He wasn't the only one who felt safe and secure like this.

* * *

We had just sat there for a while, just holding each other tightly. It didn't really matter how long it had been. It could have been minutes, it could have been hours; nothing else had existed. Eventually I felt his grip loosen. I released my grip and pulled back, looking at him. He seemed to have settled down now. I offered him a small smile of assurance.

"I'm ready," he said.

"I'm listening," I said.

"My dad," he said, his fists clenching, "he's here. He's been here the whole time." That must hurt. I saw his good hand clenching and unclenching. I reached out and took it in my own, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"He knew the whole time," he said, "I was the only one left out of the loop. May…Lady Ilene is my mum. I have a mum May. He never told me." Lady Ilene was Drew's mum? Wow. That meant Drew was…a prince.

"May, he told me that he left me to protect me," he said, his voice sounding small and tense, "May, I don't know what to think now. I've had people try to kill me before. I don't know what to do. I don't think I can just forgive him that easily you know? Even if it was to protect me, he still left. I still experienced all that heartbreak." I patted his hand, urging him to continue.

"I have a family May," he whispered, "I have a mum and a little sister I didn't know about. And they all knew except me. I think they want me to just forgive them and forget this ever happened. How can I do that May? How could they do this to me? I can't just forget everything that's happened. It's too much. It's just too much to take in." He stopped. He was finished.

"That is a lot to take in," I said. He nodded.

"Hey, it'll be ok," I said, "maybe it might take a little while, but forgiving them will make all those bitter feelings seem a lot better." He stayed quiet.

"I don't think they'd expect you to forget everything. I don't think they'd ask you to drop everything and come running back to them," I said softly. He looked down.

"Look, whatever you choose to do," I started, "I'll be here for you." Drew offered me a grateful smile. I heard the sound of a Pokémon releasing itself. I turned to Roserade

"Hey, and of course, you'll always have Roserade as well," I added. This earned me a half chuckle in response. Roserade jumped up onto the bed with us and snuggled herself down into Drew's lap.

"See?" I said, "Look, you won't be alone again. Ok?"

"Thank you May," he said. I jumped off the bed.

"Well, come on," I said, "not only do I have to brush my messy hair, but I also have to satisfy my stomach. You coming?" He chuckled.

"Yeah," he said, "just give me a moment. I have to go talk to my...parents."

"Would you like me to come?" I offered.

"Don't you need to fix your hair?" he asked back.

"I'm willing to sacrifice," I said.

"Well, ok," he said, "as long as your stomach won't be a bother."

"I'll keep it under control," I promised.

* * *

Drew's POV

May was right. Forgiving them would be hard, but I guess I couldn't stand these angry feelings anymore. I held her hand tightly as I once again opened the doors to the throne room. I saw my mum and dad talking to each other. My little sister was nowhere to be seen. Both my parents looked up as the door slammed shut behind me.

"Drew!" Ilene yelled. She ran over towards me. I stopped her by holding my hand out and turning my head away from her, signifying that I didn't want her to come any closer. When I turned to her, she had a hurt look in her eyes.

"Before you say anything," I said, "I'm still annoyed at you. Both of you."

"Drew," my dad sighed.

"Uh-uh, don't talk," I said, "I have to get this over with. I'm just going to say that it might take a little time, but I'm willing to forgive you, but it'll take time and until then, I'm still keeping my distance ok? No hugs, no family dinners or anything like that. I have to recover."

"Drew," my mum sighed, retracting her hands. May squeezed my hand.

"I just had to tell you that," I said, "But right now. I want to talk about my sister."

"What do you want to know?" My dad asked.

"Everything," I said, "start with her name, her age. You know what, just let me see her."

"I'll go get her," my mum said. My dad sighed heavily again. My mum walked out.

"I'm glad that you'll forgive us Drew," he said, "I really am. I thought I'd messed up everything."

"You did," I said bluntly, "May was the one who persuaded me to give you a second chance."

"May was it?" my dad questioned, "I don't remember you."

"I didn't come in with the others," May said, "I was waiting with Drew while he got his hand fixed up."

"Big brother!" A yell from my little sister stopped the conversation between us and I was glad. I knelt down to the ground, letting go of May's hand in the process.

"Hey you," I said, "so you say you know all about me huh?"

"Yep," she said, giggling, "I know all about you." I chuckled. I highly doubted that, but it was cute.

"Well, I don't know anything about you," I said, "how about you tell me about yourself?" I sat down, crossing my legs. To my surprise she sat down in my lap.

"My name's Renae. I'm four and a bit. I have green hair and brown eyes. My daddy says I'm short, but my mummy says I'm a big girl now. I am a big girl don't you think? I've never been out of the castle. Mummy says it's dangerous for me. I love Pokémon. My daddy says next year I can get one even though mummy says I'm too young. I have a big brother named Drew and I love him very much. He was hidden away to go on a special journey and mummy always told me that one day he would come home and now he's home. I can't wait for you to play with me." I smiled slightly. May sat down next to me.

"Do you still want me here?" she whispered in my ear. I nodded.

"I have something to add," Renae said, looking at May, "my big brother also has a very pretty girlfriend." I blushed, not looking at May. Not yet. May bit her lip before laughing. I pushed Renae out of my lap. She was small, but she was heavy and giving me a dead leg. She stood in front of us for just a moment before she started to skip around the room.

"What?" I asked May, who was still laughing.

"I'm sorry," May said, "she's just so cute and innocent." She wasn't embarrassed about what she'd just said?

"Did you hear what she just said?" I asked.

"Yeah," May said, "but she's too young to know any better. Don't worry. My young cousins used to do this to me all the time." Jealousy pulled at me. Who had been mistaken to be May's boyfriend? Renae tugged on May's hand.

"Come on," she said, trying to pull May to her feet, "I want to show you my room."

"What about me?" I asked. Renae screwed up her little nose.

"No boys are allowed," she said. May giggled.

"Sorry Drew," May said, "girls only." I smiled at her as she let Renae lead her away. I might just be able to get used to this. May and my sister having fun together.

* * *

"Your sister's so adorable," May said, lying back on my bed. I raised an eyebrow at her.

"What?" she asked.

"You have your own room you know," I said.

"Yeah, but now I'm comfortable," she replied, "So I'm not moving. Your sister really tired me out."

"I think my own sister likes you better than me," I teased.

"Nonsense," May snorted, "you wouldn't shut up about how much she loved you."

"Yeah, I feel so loved," I said sarcastically. I was only teasing though.

"Ahh, don't be like that Drew," she said, "I'd swap my brother for your sister any day. She's so sweet."

"That's a little harsh don't you think?" I teased.

"Yeah, you're right," she admitted, "still; I wish I could have a cute little sister like that." I bit my lip, a certain question on my mind.

"May, you never reacted," I said, "I have to ask. What do you think of me being a prince?" May sat up straight.

"Honestly, I don't really mind," she said, "So you're a prince. Big deal. You've been a prince the whole time. So it doesn't change anything. You're still the same Drew. Only you now have a title to your name." I sighed in relief. That was good. I grabbed the little box from the brown paper bag.

"Hey May," I called softly, fingering the box.

"Yeah?"

"Here," I said, handing her the box.

"What's this?" she asked.

"Open it and find out," I replied. She opened it, gasping in surprise. I was nervous now. There was no turning back now. I'd gotten the jeweller to cut the crystal into little gems and set them into a necklace. It was two hearts interlocked with each other. On one heart her name was carved into the silver. On the other on, was my name. I only hoped she liked it.

"Drew," she whispered, fingering it. Well she wasn't repulsed by it. That was a good sign.

"May, I love you," I confessed. I looked at her, waiting. She smiled.

"I do too," she said, "I love you." I breathed a sigh of relief at hearing those words come from her mouth. I moved over to sit beside her. I took the necklace from the box with one hand.

"Well, I guess I don't have to tell Renae that we aren't really going out," I said, "that would crush her."

"Way to ruin the romantic mood Drew," May said, smiling and rolling her eyes.

"Well, it wasn't really romantic to begin with," I said honestly, "I mean, you haven't even put this thing on."

"I thought you were going to," she said.

"Does it look like I can?" I shot back with a teasing smirk, "I've only got one hand May. What else are you expecting me to do huh?" She rolled her eyes again and took the necklace from my hands, clipping it around her neck.

"That was the part you were supposed to say 'kiss me'," I teased. She giggled slightly.

"Kiss me then Drew," she said.

"Gladly." I leaned over a little more, letting my lips touch hers for a moment. I'd kissed her once before, after I'd told her everything, but that was nothing compared to this. This was more real. This was the one done from love, not sympathy or in thanks. I pulled away and leaned my head against hers.

"Guess you better go talk to Max about this," she said, "he'll not be happy."

"Why can't your brother just be as accepting as my sister?" I joked. This earned me another small giggle.

"No, in all seriousness Drew," she said, controlling her laughter, "you better tell Max. He can be a little…uh…overprotective over me."

"Just what I wanted to hear," I said sarcastically, "you don't think he'll be too harsh on a guy with a broken hand do you?"

* * *

**A/N: Drew not only has his dad back and a mum; he also has a sister and now a girlfriend. I still have one more chapter to go. I could've left it here, but I think after all the emotional ups and downs everyone's been through reading this, you deserve a humorous ending. At least that's what I'm going for.**


	17. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

***7 years later***

May's POV

"Drew!" I yelled, "Where's Belinda? We need to get her ready." I walked throughout my house, trying to find my 3 year old daughter. She was a cheeky little handful.

"I don't know!" Drew yelled back. I groaned. This wasn't what I needed right now. We were already running late. Misty had invited us over to stay for a few weeks at their home in Cerulean City. Right now, we were in our home in Hoenn. Drew and I had gotten married 5 years ago. He'd proposed very sweetly and of course, I had accepted. His sister, being 6 at the time had screwed up her nose and said 'yuck'. Drew slowly started to get along with his parents now, gradually mending his broken relationship, but even so, he'd wanted to move away to have his own space. We knew that one day, he'd have to go back and rule or whatever, but that wasn't a problem at the moment. Being the sweetheart he is, Drew bought us a house in Slateport City; the place we first met. 2 years after being married, we welcomed Belinda Lee Hayden into the world. She had blonde hair and sparkling green eyes. She was pretty short, but a total trouble maker. She had a habit of hiding right when we needed to go somewhere. That somewhere right now was the ferry.

"Belinda!" I yelled again. Who knew three year olds could be so mischievous? I found myself slipping on the tiled floor, the ground rushing up to meet me. I squealed, holding out my hands to break my fall. It never came. Instead arms wrapped around my torso and pulled me back up. I smiled as I stared into emerald eyes.

"Clumsy," he said, "you know you can't afford to be like this. It's not just you we're worrying about here." He brushed his hand over my slightly expanded belly. We were expecting child number two. Unfortunately it made me significantly more clumsy than usual.

"Did you find Belinda?" I asked, ignoring his insult.

"Yeah," he replied, "she's hiding in the bathtub under a pile of towels. I came to get you and lucky I did."

"Is she ready?" I asked hopefully, "we have to go." Drew planted a kiss on my lips before he let me go.

"That's not an answer Drew," I said, crossing my arms and pouting.

"No, she's not," he said, "She still hasn't packed her stuff.

"I thought I told you to do that with her yesterday," I whined.

"I did," he said, "but she unpacked it all."

"Why does she hate going places?" I asked, more to myself, "Drew you have a very difficult child."

"She's yours too," he pointed out, "and I dunno, maybe tell her we're going to visit Hailey and Jason. You know she loves playing with them." Hailey and Jason. Misty's second pregnancy had resulted in fraternal twins that liked to cause just as much mischief as Belinda did. Probably why they got along so well. I put a hand to my head, feeling the headache coming on. I groaned.

"Headache?" Drew asked. I winced slightly as I nodded. One of the discomforts of pregnancy was the regular headaches. Drew had gotten used to them after the first time and he was pretty understanding about them.

"I'll get Bel ready," he whispered, "you wait in the car. I won't be long." He gently kissed my forehead.

"And drink lots of water," he added as he walked away. I smiled. I went to the fridge, picking up a drink bottle and headed out to our car. I had the best husband ever.

* * *

"Hey May, hey Drew," Ash said as he opened the door, "and hey Belinda. Hailey and Jason are out the back in the swimming pool."

"Yay!" Belinda yelled, dumping her little travel bag of toys.

"Don't go in the water unless you're in your bathers!" I yelled after her retreating figure. I sighed. Somehow I knew she was going to get dragged in regardless of whether she was in her swimsuit or not. I rubbed my forehead.

"Come on in," Ash said. He waved his hand in a motion behind him, stepping out of the way and holding the door open. I didn't hesitate to take his offer, stepping into the nice cool house.

"Put your bags down anywhere," Ash said, "I'll just fetch Misty. She's just dressing Damian." Pleased with that answer, I dropped the case I was carrying. Drew rolled his eyes and put down all three other cases he was somehow managing to carry.

Damian was Ash and Misty's youngest child. He was only a year old with Ash's frizzy style of hair, but with Misty's colouring. All their children had ended up with Ash's frizzy hair actually and only Damian had Misty's hair colour. Their oldest at five, Matthew, had Ash's brown eyes. He was the most like Ash, being dense and determined. Already he was determined to become an even better Pokémon trainer than his dad. Hailey and Jason were both a fairly even mix between both parents. Both were one year older than Belinda at 4 and had Misty's eyes. Jason was a little dense, but had a fairly short temper. Hailey was giggly and naïve, with a ferocious temper, but it took a little while to get her annoyed. Both of them were cheeky though and loved to cause mischief. Now Damian was the youngest and hadn't yet learned to walk. He was a little slow. Misty was relieved that she'd had three boys and one girl. She didn't want to go through so many girls like she'd had. Ash was rather pleased at having only one girl too. He didn't know how to handle bringing up a girl and so he left it to Misty.

"Hey May, Drew," Misty called, snapping me from my thoughts. I looked up to see her smiling at me, Damian held onto one of her hips.

"How was the trip over guys?" Misty asked.

"I dunno," I said shrugging, "I slept most of the way. You better ask Drew." Misty looked at the ground.

"ASH!" she yelled, "You get here and take May and Drew's stuff to their room!" Ash quickly ran back.

"I'm sorry Misty," he said quickly, "I was coming to get you." Misty rolled her eyes.

"Just take them while I make May and Drew some drinks," Misty said. Ash picked up our suitcases and winked at us. Misty still had a short temper, but she wasn't nearly half as threatening because of her children.

"You guys can sit down if you want," he said. I nodded to him and sat down on the couch, Drew flopping down next to me.

"What would you guys like to drink?" Misty asked, putting Damian in his play pen, "Coffee? Chocolate?"

"I'll just have water," I said.

"Coffee," Drew said. Misty nodded, flicking the coffee machine on.

"How do you like your coffee Drew?" Misty asked as she handed me a glass of water.

"Latte, no sugar," Drew replied.

"So how have you guys been?" Misty asked.

"Good," I replied, "Belinda's a handful as usual. Usual stuff."

"Aha," Misty said, "but really. How was the trip over?"

"Sickening," I said, "that's why I slept."

"I've never known you to get sea sick May," Ash said, coming back in.

"You idiot!" Misty exclaimed, "It's the pregnancy." I laughed as Misty playfully hit him over the back of the head.

"Oh yeah, Jessie, James and Meowth are coming over this afternoon," Misty said, giving Drew a steaming mug of coffee.

"Really?" I asked. It was strange, but since attending Jessie and James' wedding, Misty had become more friends with them, Meowth especially.

"Yeah," Misty confirmed, "said they were around here for a little holiday, thought they'd come and visit."

"You know what," I said, "I'm actually exhausted and my head is pounding. I think I'll sit this one out."

"You want me to come?" Drew asked.

"Nah, I'll be fine," I said, "you stay here on behalf of both of us." Drew chuckled.

"You're a strange one May," he said. I nodded and stood up, not bothering with a retort.

"I'll show you where you're sleeping," Ash said.

"Oh and Drew," I added, "Check up on Belinda and make sure she isn't making too much of a mess."

* * *

Misty's POV

Ash and Drew were sitting on the couch, talking about something that I wasn't bothering to listen to. Something only men were interested in. Meanwhile, I was trying to make sure Damian didn't get into any trouble while waiting for Jessie, James and Meowth. I mean really. Damian was supposed to be asleep by now.

"Mum!" Matthew yelled, "I'm hungry!" Not only did Matthew look like his dad, he had the same large appetite.

"Matthew, wait an hour til lunch," I said, rocking Damian gently against my hip.

"But I'm hungry now," Matthew whined.

"Gosh, you sound just like your dad," I muttered.

"Please mum," he begged.

"No," I said firmly, "you have to wait until lunch." He pouted at me and crossed his arms.

"Belinda is here," I reminded him, "you don't want to show here you have bad manners."

"I don't care if Belinda's here," he complained, "she never plays with me. She always plays with Jason and Hailey. Why can't we have Ryan over?" I sighed heavily.

"Ryan's coming over soon," I told him, "just wait 10 minutes." Matthew brightened and ran to the window to look out for them. Matthew was best friends with Jessie and James' 6 year old boy. He looked up to him and thought he was cool. A real role model for him. If only he wasn't such handful. I sighed and went back to rocking Damian. Why didn't he just sleep already? Just when his eyes were starting to close, the doorbell went off. Damian's eyes snapped open again. I guess he wasn't having a nap today. I put him down in his play pen and went to open the door.

"Ryan's here!" Matthew yelled. He ran out in front of me and waited for me to unlock the door.

"Hey Jessie, James," I greeted, "and Ryan." Ryan simply nodded to me and walked in.

"Don't be rude Ryan!" Jessie yelled, "Say a proper hello before you run away."

"It's ok Jessie," I said, "It's just boys. So tell me about this new bundle you have." I had only just noticed the wrapped up baby in her arms.

"This is Melissa," James said proudly, "born two weeks ago." I raised an eyebrow. They didn't tell me about this.

"Well, come in," I said, "Drew and Ash are in the lounge. May's gone to bed, has a pregnancy headache."

"I hope Ryan isn't too loud then," Jessie said.

"Don't worry about it," I said, "She should be ok."

"Hey dere Misty," said Meowth, "don't forget about me."

"Hey Meowth," I greeted, shutting the door _after_ he'd come in, "how've you been?"

"Good, but I just noticed. You have a silver commodore," he said.

"Yes," I said.

"Don't ya remember when we got kidnapped by Mew?" Meowth asked.

"No, I remember that," I said, "What about it."

"Well, I just happen ta notice yous married ta Ash, yous live in a house, yous have a commodore and yous have four kids," He said.

"And…" I pushed, not quite getting it.

"Does a game a MASH bring back any memories?" he asked. I thought for a moment. Wait a minute. MASH was that annoying game that kept telling me that I would have four kids with Ash, living in a house with a commodore for a car. My eyes widened._ Four kids with Ash, living in a house with a commodore for a car. _My mouth dropped. I had unintentionally made it come true.

"WHAT!" I yelled. My head spun with the realization. This had to be a crazy coincidence.

"Told ya it might just come true," Meowth said smugly. And with that, I feinted.

* * *

**A/N: So tell me honestly, was that ending humorous? I dunno. I thought it would at least be slightly amusing to bring up Meowth and Misty's MASH game. I don't know. Tell me what you think. Next up, Destiny Deoxys remake. If you enjoy my movie parodies, look out for it. It'll be under the name ****_'Destiny Drew'_****. Also, if you liked this, you might also want to check out my previous movie parody if you haven't already. It's called****_ 'The protector and the sea princess'_****. Other than that, you guys are all amazing! Thank you so much to all those who enjoyed and supported me you're all awesome. Oh and one more thing. At the moment I've started up a truth or dare pokemon style thing. If you're into that sort of thing, check it out and please offer your own truths or dares to torture the characters with. Because we all want to make pokemon characters do or admit something embarrassing right? Or is that just me?**


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